{"collection":"philosophy-ethics","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_62209/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_62209","id":"gutenberg_62209","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62209","summary":null,"tags":["Category: History - British","Category: History - European","Category: Philosophy & Ethics","England -- Social life and customs"],"text":"SOME OBSERVATIONS\n\n UPON THE\n\n CIVILIZATION\n\n OF THE\n\n WESTERN BARBARIANS,\n\n PARTICULARLY OF THE ENGLISH;\n\n MADE DURING A RESIDENCE OF SOME YEARS IN THOSE PARTS,\n\n By AH-CHIN-LE,\n\n MANDARIN OF THE FIRST CLASS, MEMBER OF THE\n ENLIGHTENED AND EXALTED CALAO.\n\n TRANSLATED FROM THE CHINESE INTO ENGLISH,\n\n By JOHN YESTER SMYTHE, Esq.,\n OF SHANGHAI,\n\n AND\n\n NOW FIRST PUBLISHED OUT OF CHINA AND IN OTHER THAN CHINESE.\n\n BOSTON:\n LEE AND SHEPARD, PUBLISHERS.\n\n NEW YORK:\n CHARLES T. DILLINGHAM,\n 678 BROADWAY.\n 1876.\n\n\n\n\n COPYRIGHT.\n J.B. SWASEY.\n 1876.\n\n\n\n\nTRANSLATOR'S PREFACE.\n\n\nThis Translation of the Work of Ah-Chin-le is trustworthy as to the\nmeaning of the Text--though the literal translation has not been, in\nmany cases, attempted.\n\nPreserving the Spirit of the Author, the Translator has desired to be\nintelligible in good, readable English. Where it is impossible to give\nthe precise thought of a mind so differently cultured, the _nearest_\nEnglish is given. It is hoped that the inherent difficulty of the task\nmay excuse errors of grammar and style.\n\nThe Translator has been so absorbed in his Author, that he fears he may\nhave often slipped in his Syntax, and been rude in his manner. However,\nwith whatever faults, he hands the volume to his Countrymen--thinking\nthat they may be as much interested in it as he has been; and may\nderive as much amusement. If it do not commend itself for its Wisdom,\nit may, at least, for its novelty--that is, as a genuine expression of\nintelligent _Chinese_ opinion, concerning the \"_Civilization of the\nWestern Barbarians, and particularly of the English_.\"\n\nThe Author's own Preface explains the Origin of the Work, and its\nclaims to consideration.\n\n The Retreat,\n Shanghai, China, 1875.\n\n J.Y.S.\n\n\n\n\nAUTHOR'S PREFACE.\n\n\nAh-chin-le, Mandarin, and member of the exalted _Calao_, to the\nIllustrious _Wo-sung_, Mandarin, First class, President of the most\nSerene, the grand Council, _Calao_; virtue, health, and the highest\nplace in the Hall of your Sublime Ancestors! Trained from my youth\nfor many years in the school of the Foreigners [Fo-kien], so as to\nbe versed in the languages of the chief Barbarians of the West, and\nparticularly of the English, afterwards perfected in the latter at our\nport of Shanghai, and sent by your Illustrious command upon a private\nmission with the Imperial Embassy to the outside Barbarians of the far\nWest to curiously seek into the state of those Peoples, and report upon\nthe same to your Illustrious mind--that being so informed exactly,\nyour Wisdom might, in those matters appertaining to the Western\nBarbarians, enlighten the Son of Heaven (our Celestial and Imperial\nMajesty [Bang-ztse] most renowned and exalted) when, in Council, things\ntouching those outer Barbarians should be considered: these, my poor\nwords, in so far as to your Illustrious Wisdom it has been thought\nproper to make general, are now produced: that the happy subjects\nof our Central, Flowery Kingdom, may understand more perfectly the\ncondition of those outside Barbarians, respecting whom so very little\nis known, and may the more cautiously guard the Sacred Institutions\n[Kam-phfe] of our Celestial Land--wise, peaceful, powerful, and teeming\nwith an industrious and contented people, before the Western Barbarians\nhad so much as the rudiments of learning.\n\nAh-chin prostrates his poor body before your Illustrious Benevolence,\nand craves forbearance that these, his unworthy _Observations_, are not\nbetter ordered:--the circumstances of travel, fatigue, agitation of\nmind, hurry and confusion, have been unfavourable for that due ordering\nof the same which a respect for your Illustrious Wisdom required--in\nthis particular the precise Report, submitted to the Exalted, the\n_Calao_, through the hands of your Illustrious Greatness, is more\nperfect. These are minutes, rather, jotted down and fastened for better\nreordering, if, at another time, it should be judged fit. May the\nSovereign Lord of Heaven [Chang-ti] keep your Illustrious mind and body!\n\n AH-CHIN-LE.\n\nNOTE.--These _Observations_ now following were made in England, and\nrefer chiefly to the _English_ Barbarians, who pride themselves\nupon being the most powerful and most enlightened of all the outer\nBarbarians, and, in fact, of any People in the whole, immense World.\n\n Ah-Chin.\n\n\n\n\nTABLE OF CONTENTS.\n\n\n CHAPTER                                                            PAGE\n\n I.--OF THE RELIGION AND SUPERSTITIONS OF THE\n ENGLISH                                                              1\n\n II.--OF THE HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY OF THE ENGLISH                    45\n\n III.--SOME PARTICULARS OF THE INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION               76\n\n IV.--UPON EDUCATION: A FEW REFLECTIONS                              98\n\n V.--OF THE LITERATURE OF THE ENGLISH                               109\n\n VI.--OF THEIR TRADE, AND REVENUE DERIVED FROM IT                   131\n\n VII.--SOME REMARKS UPON MARRIAGES, BIRTHS, AND\n BURIALS [HI-DI]                                                    150\n\n VIII.--OF ART, ARCHITECTURE, AND SOME WORDS ABOUT\n SCIENCE [KNO-TE]                                                   170\n\n IX.--OF AMUSEMENTS, GAMES, AND SPECTACLES                          195\n\n X.--OF EMPLOYMENTS OF THE PEOPLE, AND ASPECTS OF\n DAILY LIFE                                                         214\n\n XI.--OF THE HIGH-CASTES: SOME PARTICULARS OF THEIR\n DOMESTIC AND SOCIAL CUSTOMS                                        223\n\n XII.--OF THE APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY, THE CLIMATE,\n AND OTHER THINGS                                                   246\n\n XIII.--LONDON                                                      257\n\n XIV.--SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS                                    278\n\n\n\n\nOBSERVATIONS.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nOF THE RELIGION AND SUPERSTITIONS OF THE ENGLISH.\n\n\nThe worship of the supreme Lord of Heaven [Chang-ti], is not unknown to\nthese Barbarians, though degraded by many Superstitions.\n\nThe purity of the divine and original Worship (as with the vulgar in\nour Celestial Kingdom) is too simple. About 500 or 600 years after\nour Confutze, in the time of the Romans, there appeared in an obscure\nprovince of their Empire a new Sect of devotees, who asserted that\nthey had among them a Son of Heaven. This Son they called _Christ_;\nand those who adopted this new deity were called _Christians_. This\nwas nearly 2000 years [met-li-ze] ago. The Sect increased and spread.\nOne of the Emperors of the West adopted the new god, and enforced the\nworship of him upon the subjects of the Empire.\n\nAll the Western Barbarians derive their knowledge from the Romans;\nwhose power, indeed, they over-turned, but whose civilization they\nimitated. Particularly, the Bonzes (Priests) of the new _Superstition_,\njoined to the Chiefs of new powers (which arose upon the ruins of the\nRoman Empire), preserved some remains of the ancient Learning, and\nenforced the new Superstition. What little of letters remained was\nalmost entirely with the Bonzes. This event was much the same as the\nintroduction from the Hindoos into our Central Kingdom of the worship\nof the Hindoo god, _Fo_; and, curiously, these events happened at about\nthe same time.\n\nIt is to be observed that in our Illustrious Kingdom there is a\ntendency to superstitious observances. We have several _Sects_\n[pho-ti]; but our _Literati_ merely tolerate and do not worship. A\nsimple and pure homage to the Sovereign Lord of Heaven [Hoang-chan-ti]\nis an act of the Wise: and even the _Sects_ make their _Spirits_\nsubordinate to Him. The Western Barbarians, however, dishonour the\ntrue worship by strange \"rites\"--even by incredible superstitions,\nwhen the intellectual culture is considered. It is not long since, in\nthe monstrous credulity of the people, directed by the Bonzes, it was\nbelieved that the _Devil_ (Chief of the _Evil Demons_) would enter into\nan individual--generally some old, ugly, and friendless woman--and,\n_by her_, turn the milk sour, drive the cattle mad, torture children,\nshrivel up the limbs, blast with the _Evil Eye_; and even plague\nwith disease and with horrible death! And these wretched women, and\nsometimes men, themselves often fancying that the Devil was really\nin them, were seized upon, dragged through mud and mire, fearfully\nmaltreated, and put to death by the horrible torments of fire, upon\nthis wild accusation: and this terrible scene was not caused by a\nmaddened rabble of the common sort, but under the lead of the Bonzes,\nand according to the Laws of the Land.\n\nThe great, central figure of idolatry is the Pope, who sits enthroned\nin Rome; and is, generally, a very old man, not always remarkable\nfor wisdom nor virtue. He claims to be the sole vicegerent of the\nChrist-god, and only visible divine Head--all who do not worship\nhim are really not true worshippers. Yet, there are many _Sects_ of\nthis _Superstition_; and in England, the Sovereign is held to be the\ntrue Pope and Head! The English Pope now worshipped is therefore\na woman--the Queen! Such a thing seemed to me to be too wild--a\nphantasy--I could not comprehend. I knew that this Sect--the Roman--had\nlong ago followers in our Flowery Kingdom; and our annals show was\ntolerated: not, however, for the _Superstition_, but for the Bonzes,\nwho were masters of some useful knowledge. Personally, I never knew any\nnative devotees of the Superstition--in fact it has steadily diminished\nin repute, and its few and scattered adherents are very obscure. So I\nwas, and am still, puzzled by this extraordinary _Sect_. I have read\nthe _Creed_; a sort of verbal incantation, made by devotees in the\ntemples.\n\nOne day, I begged of a good-natured, large-bellied, Priest to explain\nto me; and ventured to ask him if the _Creed_ was really an Article of\nBelief, or only a formal and meaningless Invocation--like some of the\nmummeries [phin-zi] of our Superstitious Sects. He looked surprised;\nbut when he saw that he was thus accosted by a \"_Heathen Chinee_\" (as\nthese Barbarians always contemptuously call the inhabitants of our\nCentral Land), he merely said: \"Why, you have in China our Missionaries\nto enlighten your darkness; have you never met them?\" \"No; I have\nheard of them at Shanghai; but they do not speak our tongue, nor do\nwe understand them; and their teachings, even if understood, would\nattract no attention from the _Literati_, who would consider them as\nunworthy of notice as any other Superstition.\" \"How so? our Religion is\nno Superstition; it is the true and _only_ true Religion, revealed by\nGod himself to his chosen people, and miraculously preserved for all\nbelievers.\" \"I bow before your Illustrious mind and body; but we have,\nand have had from time immemorial, just such pretensions; they are as\nold as history.\" \"I will not argue; but look at the excellency of our\ndivine religion!\" \"Where shall I look? If you mean the excellency of\ncertain moral principles, there is nothing peculiar to your _Sect_\nin them. They have been taught in our schools for thousands of\nyears--they _are_ excellent; they show the divine in man--man is of the\ndivine; morality comes of that.\" \"But look at your frightful vices;\nat your Pagan worship--see the effects of idolatry!\" \"I bow to your\nIllustrious mind.\" I saw my effort to obtain any reasonable explanation\nwas fruitless; I made my obeisance and left. What an illustration of\nignorant and superstitious conceit! Vice, thousands of miles beyond\nsea, so dreadful; the vice at hand, defiling every corner, unseen! The\nonly true Religion of this Priest will not see, or, seeing, he will\nnot believe that it is Vice--or, at any rate, idolatrous--pagan Vice!\nI could not believe, at first, that the _Superstition_ was more than\na Form, kept up merely for the advantage of the Priests. The sharp\nintellects of the Barbarians, applied so fruitfully to useful arts,\nseemed stultified, if I held to their actual belief. I doubted the\nhonesty of the Priests; I knew the bad character of many of the Bonzes\nof our Superstitious Sects. Now, better acquainted with the imperfect\ncivilization of the people, I am not moved by these ignorant and\nbigoted displays. Poverty, vice, and drunkenness; crimes of violence\nand fraud, are rife among the Barbarians. The Temples, ordered and\nmaintained by the _Queen-Pope_, are, for the most part--especially in\ngreat cities--empty. The Sects of the Low-Caste people, despised by\nthe High-Caste, are far more zealous worshippers, though not better\n_Christians_. The funds raised to support the great Temples and the\nPriests, are nearly all absorbed by them, and the Temples left ruinous.\nThe lowest Castes do not worship, but curse the Sovereign Lord. Yet,\nour Illustrious Kingdom is called _Pagan_--_Heathen_--words implying\nevery degradation; and our people fit only to be turned over to the\nendless torments of Evil Spirits!\n\nLike our Confutze, the principles of morality and general benevolence\nare taught in the sayings ascribed to Christ. Yet fighting in the\nmost brutal manner is allowed in the Schools, although the teachings\nof Christ, commanding Charity and Peace, are conned over in the daily\nlessons; and horrible Wars for the subjugation of other Peoples,\nincessantly waged! Still, if we may believe these Barbarians, all\ntrue religion and virtue are possessed only by them! The education of\nthe people has been disregarded; and now, when the wisest of their\ngreat men has, with great difficulty, caused a decree to issue for\nthe teaching of the neglected masses, at least, in some rudimental\nlearning, the purpose is likely to fail. The Priests demand that the\n_Superstition_ shall be taught, and those of one _Sect_ insist that\nthey shall lead; denouncing a differing _Sect_. Each _Sect_ denounces\nevery other: and, so far is the contention carried, that the teaching\nof the people is lost sight of; the special _Superstition_ of a Sect\nbeing held by its adherents far more important than merely \"Secular\"\nteaching! It must be understood, that though, commonly, there is but\nlittle real reverence for the Supreme Lord, and less benevolence, yet,\nsuch is the hold which the Bonzes have got of the imagination (by means\nof the _devil and hell_, which are greatly feared), that they are a\n_power_. Their demands, therefore, as to the education of the people,\nwill be respected; and the matter be left, largely, in their hands.\nThis, owing to the bitterness existing among the Bonzes of the Sects,\nwill cause the whole attempt to fail--to fail, as a general measure.\nThe Lowest orders, for whom the design was chiefly devised, do not hold\nthe Bonzes in esteem, and will not be so readily led by them, even were\nthe Priests themselves in accord. The Sects and the Priests not only\nfight upon this subject; they are usually at strife upon any matter\nwherein their co\u00f6peration is desired. One leading rule of the _Sacred\nWritings_ commands, _Peace_. In respect of all who differ from them,\nthese Sects say that the true meaning is, _War_! Each Sect dislikes\nand denounces every other; and the members of all damn to everlasting\ntorments the whole human race but themselves! This place of eternal\ntorture in \"fire and brimstone\" [Zan-tan-li] is called Hell [Tha-dee]!\n\nIn the ceaseless conflicts of the _Sects_, the most dreadful crimes\nhave been committed. The chief events recorded in the annals of the\nWestern Barbarians for many ages, and even to this time, have been\nonly bloody wars, massacres, and vile intrigues, springing out of\nthese conflicts: horrible crimes, again and again repeated, and under\ncircumstances too dreadful for belief. And when I have looked into the\ncauses of these shocking events, there seemed to be no more involved\nthan the manner of interpreting some obscure word or phrase in the\n_Sacred Writings_; which to a wise man would be unimportant, however\ninterpreted, or if never interpreted at all!\n\nAt this moment, the best intellects among the English (who boast\nthat they are superior to all other Barbarians), are hotly disputing\nas to the proper mode of wearing vestments, of holding or of not\nholding candles, of standing and posturing, and other matters equally\nimportant, when the Priests officiate in the Temples. The most trivial\nthing in the _Superstition_ is esteemed of such consequence, that\nan error respecting it may be fatal to the \"soul\" [pan-tzi] in the\nfuture life! Some of the most learned fear the words and \"missives\"\nof the poor old man, who sits in Rome (already referred to), and is\nworshipped by most Christians out of England (and by very many in it)\nas the only delegate of the _Christ-god_. They fear this Pope--fear\nthat by his connection with the _Evil One_ he will \"_play the devil_\"\namong them. And though of precisely the same Christ-god _Superstition_,\nmerely because of a difference of opinion as to the visible \"Head\" of\nthat Superstition, really believe that this poor old man (called by\nthe larger portion of Christians, with profound worship, Pope, _Holy\nFather_) may, by his wicked devices, allure into his worship, and bring\nunder his power, the English Barbarians; to the everlasting destruction\nof their souls!\n\nThis notion of an _Evil-one_, universal among all the Barbarians, I\nnever well comprehended. We have in our Flowery Kingdom Sects which\nbelieve in good and bad _Spirits_; although our _Literati_ smile at\nsuch things; that is, in the vulgar forms. But the Christians assert\nthat the Devil is too strong with men for the Supreme Lord--and the\nEnglish _Sect_ say that the Pope is a very child of the Devil! To be\nsure, their Sect is the feeblest of all, and merely separated from the\ngreat Pope-sect upon points not touching the superstition itself, and\nreally on selfish and personal grounds. They know that the Pope justly\nclaims a direct and regular succession from the _Christ-God_; that he\nand his adherents, forming the vast majority of _Christians_ (as all\nthe sects call themselves) are believers with themselves in all the\nmain \"_dogmas_\" [ka-nti] of the Superstition; yet, none the less, they\nare the children of the Evil-one, and fit for Hell. And not the vulgar\nonly, but the learned actually have a horror that the Pope may be again\nworshipped in England. A calamity too terrible for contemplation!\n\nThe Pope-worshipping Sect repay this hate with an equal abhorrence,\nand send the English _heretics_ to the awful Hell, with the same\nsatisfaction.\n\nAll the Western Barbarians worship this new _Christ-God_, but, like our\ndevoters of _Fo_, divided into many Sects, as I have already intimated.\nThe benignant _Fo_, teaches his idolatrous devotees how to differ\nwithout hate. But, these _Christians_ are always at strife, bitter and\nirreconcilable; not as to essentials, even within the Superstition\nitself, (to say nothing of genuine morality), but as to things trivial\nand absurd. One will say, \"Be baptised or be damned to the eternal\nHell!\" But another says, \"Baptism is only a symbol, one may be saved\nwithout it.\" Then, \"What is baptism?\" Some say \"The Priest must immerse\nin water;\" but another, \"No, the Priest must sprinkle the face only.\"\nYet another, \"Water is itself nothing, Priest nothing, unless before\neither, the baptism of the 'Holy Spirit' have occurred.\" To perfect the\n\"rite,\" all say that the Priest must offer proper \"Incantations,\" and\ngenerally in the Temples before the Idol. The contestants damn each\nother to everlasting torments for not being _truly_ baptised.\n\nAll the Sects say, \"You must believe in Christ or be damned;\" but do\nnot agree as to what this _Belief_ is, and go on damning each the other\nfor not having truly believed.\n\nIt is impossible, however, to make intelligible the countless vagaries\nof the Sects. They all fight under the same _Christ-God_, whom they\nall address, among other titles, as the \"Prince of Peace\" [Tchu-pe].\nThey all profess to follow His precepts, one of which is to love all\nmen, even enemies (not _friends_, one of these angry disputants once\nsaid). These revered Precepts are written in the _Sacred Books_, and\nall the Sects swear their oaths upon these, and resort to them for\nthe unchangeable rules of belief and practice. They all declare that\nthe _Sacred Writings_ are so plain that a man, \"though a fool, may\nunderstand,\" and so clear, \"that he who runs may read.\" Yet, they\ncurse each other to the eternal torments for interpreting erroneously.\nThe truth is, that _the Books_ are most obscure, and differences of\ninterpretation are inseperable from their use; the terrible thing is,\nthat Superstition has made these differences so important. The _Sacred\nWritings_ are contradictory, and teeming with things indifferent,\nmeaningless, or trivial. Written at widely different periods, by\nmany hands, long ages ago, in an obscure and barbarous dialect, for\ndifferent objects, their true meanings cannot always be rendered. But\nfew, even of the Priest-class, can read them at all in the original.\nThey are mainly Records of the Laws, customs and wars of an obscure and\nterrible race, here and there interspersed with Invocations to the Gods\nof that race, and with their Proverbs, or words of wisdom. This tribe,\ncalled _Jews_, revolted from their masters, the Egyptians, and fled\ninto a desert region lying west from the Hindoos. The man who led them\nin this revolt was learned in the laws and customs of Egypt, and upon\nthese he founded his own system. He declared himself to be directly\ncalled by Jah (Jehovah) to be their High Priest and Judge--that they\nwere to obey him who received from Jah immediate instructions--that, in\nfact, to disobey him was to disobey Jah. That he was to lead them forth\nto found a new State, and that the power to announce the will of Jah\nalone resided with him and his successors, in this High Priesthood, and\nthat they could only be successful over their enemies and prosper, by\nan implicit obedience to Jah, by the mouth of the High Priest.\n\nThis event took place in our dynasty, _Shang_; and our annals,\nreferring to the Western Barbarians of the ancient times, make mention\nof some things--obscure movements of tribes, and of the great works\nperformed by the Egyptians; and of a servile race, condemned to toil\non these structures: and, possibly, this revolt of the Jews may have\nbeen contained in these references. However, the whole matter would\nhave been lost ages ago, nor have left a trace, but for the singular\ncircumstance that the ancient records of these Jews have in a good\nmeasure escaped destruction. This happened not by any chance; but from\nthe fact that the High Priest, pretending to be the very mouth of Jah,\nmade all his utterances _Sacred_; and the Priesthood, inscribing and\npreserving the Jewish \"Rites,\" worship and institutes of all kinds,\nguarded these writings with extreme care; which the reverence of the\nSuperstitious people enhanced. Thus these _Institutes_ of the Jews,\ndeclared to be by the Priests the very will of Jah, came to be \"_Holy_\"\n[Kan-ti]--inviolable! Now, the Barbarians regard this preservation\nof the Jewish Records as an evidence of their divinity, and a clear\nwarning to man not to disregard them; and when they assert (as, by\nthe High Priest, they constantly do), \"Thus saith the Lord-God-Jah,\"\nthey accept the declaration, and bow before it, as the very word of\nJehovah! But we know that similar \"_Sacred Writings_\" are common in the\nEast, and that these pretensions of the Priests are as universal as\n_Superstition_ itself; in fact, form the chief features in it.\n\nThe new Christ-God was a Jew; and, though, singularly enough, in the\nwords ascribed to him, in those parts of the _Sacred Writings_ assigned\nto him and his immediate followers, there are bitter denunciations of\nthe spirit and of the letter of much in the old, Priest-made part;\nand he distinctly says that his office is to give new and reformed\nrules; none the less, his immediate followers, being Jews, naturally\nlooked upon him as Great High-Priest, speaking as did their ancient\nHigh-Priest (High-Priest and Christ-God)--the very \"mouth-piece\"\n[Mu-te-pi] of Jehovah! Adding to the High-Priest a _Messiahship_;\nfor they believed him to be the mysterious _Messiah_ of their Sacred\nWritings, foretold by their wise _Seers_ long ages before! The great\nHigh-Priest who should deliver them from all their enemies, and lead\nthem to a universal dominion! Very few of the Jews themselves, however,\nadhered to this opinion: in fact, Christ was put to a shameful death by\nthem as an _Imposter_ [Kon-ti-fe]. And by the Jews, in general, he was\nand is still considered to be a misguided fanatic. The Romans at this\ntime held the Jewish province, and continued to do so. Meantime, the\nfollowers of the Christ-God, as I have said, spread by degrees, after\nhis death, into other Roman provinces. New Superstitions were often\ngreedily received; the Western Barbarians had always readily adopted\nnew gods, and new Superstitions. This idolatry was, however, held in\ncontempt by the learned; but it slowly spread among the lower orders,\nand penetrated to Rome itself.\n\nThe Roman soldiery, in some instances, made it conspicuous; and,\nafter some generations, a Roman Emperor, thinking he saw some\nmiraculous evidence of its divine force (in the workings of his own\ndark imagination), forced this new Superstition upon his Empire. That\nEmpire embraced the Western world. The Barbarians who succeeded to them\nadopted, largely, their laws; their worship, and their religious rites.\nThus, these Western Barbarians are _Christians_; and, though they\ndetest the Jews none the less, hold to their \"Sacred Writings\" as the\nvery words of Jah--whom they also worship! This they do because they\nfollow the few Jews who accepted Christ as Jehovah, rather than the\n_whole people_ who rejected him!--follow the few who accepted Christ as\nthe Messiah-God promised in the \"Sacred Writings;\" and hold with them\nthat these are the only _Revelation_ of the will of Jehovah to man! By\n_Jehovah_ meaning the only Supreme Lord of Heaven!\n\nThe remarkable thing is that this enormous pretension is not ascribed\nto _Christ_, but is obscurely announced in certain writings of the\nearly Christian Jews. Thus these Western Barbarians, scoffing the\nname of Jew, accept of his ancient and ferocious god, and adopt the\nbarbarous _rites_ of a blood-thirsty and obscure tribe of the desert,\nmake the records kept by the Priests of the tribe _Sacred_, and curse\nto _Hell_ the whole Jewish race for not accepting the interpretation of\n_a few of their number_--the few, and only a few, worshipping Christ as\nthe true _Christ-God_. That is, these Barbarians better understand the\nsubject than the people into whose hands the matter was entrusted by\nDivine wisdom.\n\nWhen one considers, then, the foundation of the great worship of the\nWest, one wonders not at the Sects and strife. Founded in dark and\ncruel _institutes_ of ignorant antiquity, the attempt to engraft a\nbetter system failed, because in this attempt the Priests were still\n_Jews_, who, adoring Christ, adored him as Jehovah and a Jewish\nHigh-Priest. What follows becomes more intelligible, but not less\nastonishing. The new worship has its divine _Revelation_ from Jah,\ninterpreted by its Priests, who introduce Christ as their great\nHigh-Priest, and the _Christ-Jehovah_ of the new worship. All are\n_damned_ to the everlasting Hell who do not believe these Priests,\nworship this new god, and accept as the very Divine _Word_ these\n_Jewish writings_. This superstition suited the dark imaginations of\nthe Barbarians, and was, in truth, not unlike their own, and may have\nhad a common origin.\n\nThe intellectual activity of succeeding ages has been mainly devoted\nto these _Sacred Writings_; and the disputes, as to the meaning,\nnever-ending. Every word has been criticised. _Sects_ have been formed\nupon a syllable--appearing and disappearing. Now one would madly\nstarve, another feast. Some fanatics would live in caves, some on\ninaccessible mountains; some tortured themselves, and held women to\nbe unclean unless they married _Christ_. Some would only shout their\ninvocations, others would only commune with the god _inside_. Some\n_would_ kneel, others _would_ stand. Sometimes a sect more wild than\nusual would organise vast bands of warriors, all wearing a symbol to\nshow that they were Christians--usually a _cross_ (because the Jews\nput Christ to death by hanging him upon a cross); and, placing Priests\nat the head, would rush to distant parts to root out _pagans_. These\ndreadful slaughters of distant tribes were called _Crossades_ (from\nthe symbol referred to). Some Sects destroyed society by another\nfanaticism; they forced men to live in caves or in dark stone chambers,\nshut off from all cheerful life, and from all intercourse with women;\nwhere they should constantly make invocations, lash themselves with\nthongs, and half-starve themselves; having skulls to hold before them,\nand awful paintings of Hell and devils to horrify them,--if perchance\nthey may propitiate the _Christ-God_, Jah. Women also being driven into\nsimilar, horrid imprisonment in stone vaults, where the whole life is\nspent in invocations and sufferings, without so much as seeing any man.\n\nThese and numberless other things grow out of the interpretations,\never-changing, of the _Sacred Writings_; which, to the dark imaginings\nof Priests and devotees, seem ever to give such utterances as fit to\ntheir feelings. To the Priests they are an unfailing arsenal of power.\n\nFor many ages nearly all the Books written--mainly by Priests--were\nin respect of the _Sacred Writings_; called commentaries, homilies,\ndisputations, doctrines, invocations, sermons; endless in name, and\nnameless.\n\nThis _Literature_ is less in repute than formerly, and immense\ncollections of huge writings are now rotting away in the dismal alcoves\nof _Libraries_ [Buk-sti], as great stone buildings for keeping Books\nare called. This _Literature_ is rarely looked at now, excepting by the\nPriests and antiquaries [ol-olphoo]; much of it is obsolete in form,\nor in the Roman--not now so much in vogue as formerly. A large portion\nof the writings, and a larger portion of the \"speeches\" [phi-lu-tin],\nhowever, are devoted to the same subject; but the style is modern,\nand less obscure, though not less deformed by a dark and irrational\nsuperstition.\n\nTo my poor mind, were all these innumerable productions of gloomy and\nbewildered intellects--misled and crazed by a monstrous Idolatry--swept\nfor ever away, nothing would be lost--nothing, unless the most\nastonishing monument ever builded by man. However, it is doubtful\nwhether to lose even this is not better than to have _anything_ left of\nso monstrous a Pretension.\n\nWhilst thus the Barbarian _brain_ wasted itself in this wretched work,\nand piled up its ponderous tomes of useless, and worse than useless,\nLiterature--holding knowledge in general as vain, and _Science_, when,\nin Priestly interpretation, not according to the barbarous _Sacred\nWritings_, as a thing to be accursed--activity of body, during the\nsame ages, did _its_ dreadful work. Directed by the Priests, one\n_Sect_ denounced another as _damnable_, and the stronger attempted to\ndestroy the weaker by \"fire and sword.\" New contentions would arise,\nto be crushed out by bloody execution; only to spring up again, to\nbe again extirpated. Every _Sect_ as it appeared would fight for\nsupremacy. All worshipped the Christ-God, and sought the same Sacred\nWritings; and all invoked His aid, and pointed to those Writings for\ntheir authority--to exterminate a weaker _Sect_; to deliver over\nwhole provinces to rapine, slaughter, burning, destruction; cities in\nconflagration; women, children, as well as men, not merely slain, but\nput to death with tortures unspeakable; massacres, by treachery and\nsurprise, of thousands and tens of thousands! To such work was the\nactivity of body largely directed by Priests and the savage chiefs.\nFor ages these atrocities were perpetrated. History has no parallel of\nhorror; human nature seemed to have become possessed by the _Devil_\nof the Superstition, and exceeded its _diabolism_ [pau-di-ki]. In the\nname of Christ, fire, slaughter, and rapine, spread over the whole\nimmense world. Wherever the Priests of this dark superstition became\npowerful, everything which opposed them perished. It was a cardinal\nprinciple that men could be saved from the dreadful Hell only by the\naid of the Priests, and by accepting of their interpretation of the\n_Sacred Writings_. The system erected by the Priests was called the\n_Church_, and none could be saved unless they were in the pale of _Holy\nChurch_--unless they, in the manner directed by the Priests, performed\nall the rites of worship. These not merely were directed to the worship\nof the Sacred Writings, the Christ-God and Jah, but to the mother of\nGod and to the Pope. In England, by and by, the Priests threw off the\nRoman Pope, and set up the English Sovereign, for the time being, as\nPope, and put men and women to death by fire and torture for still\npreferring the older Idol.\n\nNor is this madness, this fanatical fury, wholly expended. Education\nhas not yet raised these Western tribes into the enjoyment of a\nrational worship--of a rational morality--of a life, calm, tolerant,\nand beneficent. They have never attained the civilisation of our\nCentral Kingdom, and to the wisdom of our illuminated Confutse.\n\nThere is morality to be found among them, and a few worship, purely\nand simply, the God of Heaven, and look with untroubled hearts upon\nthe senseless superstitions. The masses are, however, still held in\nthem; and the High Castes either hold to the prevailing idolatries,\nor pretend to do so. This old Jewish Worship, with its _rites_ and\npretensions, fastened upon tribes by Priests and the Roman power,\nis still dominant in the West. In England to-day it is the same\nsuperstition, only the Queen is Pope, instead of the Man at Rome. For\nthis the English are _damned_, as worthy of Hell-fire, by Roman Pope\nworshippers; and the English return the curse. A constant _Bugbear_\n[Do-nki] to the English mind is, that the more powerful Roman Pope may\nget into England again; then, what horrors! Nor does this frightful\n_chimera_ alone alarm the lower people; the most learned Englishmen,\nand their wisest, exert their minds in writing and in preaching against\nthis terrible thing.\n\nTo me this seemed strange--incredible. The English Barbarians are, in\ngeneral, sharp enough; they are learned in many things; they can see\nthe absurdity of Eastern superstitions; they denounce the Roman-Pope\nworship as worthy of _hell_; but they worship a Queen-pope at home, and\nthe same Christ-Jah-god and \"sacred writings\" which the Romans worship.\nThey believe, as do the Roman-pope worshippers, that all who do not\nworship the _sacred writings_ and the _Christ-Jah-god_, and accept of\nthe Priest-_Church_, will inevitably burn for ever in fires of Hell;\nyet, because of the separation as to Pope worship, each regards the\nother _sect_ with a hatred only appeased by sending each the other\nto the dreadful Hell! How incredible that the human mind--the active\nand skilled human mind--should alarm itself and others for fear of the\nworship of a Pope--a man: and really think the condition of the human\nsoul would be hopelessly wretched--if it mistook the right object of\nworship--the idol of Rome, or the idol of England! The intellect truly\nemployed would be directed to the overthrow of _the superstition_ and\nits objects of idolatry altogether. The Roman or the English Pope--the\nRoman or the English _sect_--what matter? Both alike indifferent and\nworthless to an intelligent worshipper of the SUPREME LORD OF HEAVEN\n(Hoang-chan-ti). His worship is elevating, supporting a clean morality,\ntolerant, benevolent--a morality found wherever man is found; debased,\nmore or less, as man be debased, or as he may be sunken in vicious or\ncruel superstitions.\n\nTo restore a pure worship is to help on a better civilisation among the\nBarbarians. Nor would a respect for the morality ascribed to Christ do\nother than help in the same way. The misfortune is, that that morality\nhas been overlaid with Jewish and Priestly additions and inventions.\nThere are some of the English _literati_ who dare to teach a purer\nworship, discarding the _superstition_ in its grosser pretensions; but\nthey are not listened to.\n\nIt is difficult to understand what is accepted as _true_ by the\ndiffering _Sects_--but their differences may be disregarded--and I will\nrefer to what all the Sects of the _Great Superstition_ subscribe to,\naside from the matter of _Pope_.\n\n_One, only God_: in three parts--each part a very God!\n\n  1. _The Judge and destroyer_ of mankind; for all are damned to Hell!\n  This is the Jewish Jah.\n\n  2. _The Son_, begotten of Jah upon an immaculate virgin. Sent to\n  mediate with Jah and appease His fierce anger, so that some may\n  escape Hell--that is, those few who have \"_believed in_\" _and\n  worshipped the Son_, the Father, and other things. For as to what\n  is to be believed, form the points of endless contention, as I have\n  hinted.\n\n  3. _The Holy Ghost_, or Comforter, whose function I have never\n  comprehended. It appears to be a divine _Effluence_, entering into\n  the devotee, to warm, exalt, and enlighten him; especially to comfort\n  him and to support him in his dire conflicts with \"_the flesh,\n  hell, and the devil_\" (as the Superstition reads). It is an \"awful\n  mystery\" in the _rites_, and has crazed many a worshipper; for those\n  who fancy themselves to be in the possession of this _Effluence_\n  feel like gods, and conduct themselves as scarcely accountable to\n  mortal control; though others feel an absorption, as they say, into\n  the divine nature--a notion like that of some of the fanatics of the\n  Hindoos and of the East.\n\nAs powerful, indeed more powerful over men, is the terrible\nSatan--_Devil_, _Evil One_. There are many names and shapes. This\nmonster was once (according to the superstition) chained down in\nhell-fire, for having raised a rebellion against Jah, who, however, let\nhim loose again, and gave him wings to fly from his fiery prison to\nthe world, where he should wage war with Jah, in a covert way, by his\ncraft drawing away mankind from Jah to his worship and to his designs;\nthat, however, he should never prevail to overthrow Jah, and the only\nresult would be to increase the number of the countless devils of\nlow degree already in Hell, by adding to them nearly the whole human\nrace!--for to that torment all go who do not worship in spirit and in\ntruth, according to the superstition. This awful strife between Satan\nand Jah always proceeds. The Priests say that, for \"some wise purpose,\"\nJah suffers Satan to succeed in his snares; and his victims continually\nfall into the everlasting place of Fire, prepared for the devil and his\nvictims. The Priests say that this wholesale destruction of mankind\nwas a thing predetermined by Jah, and that he created the Devil to\naccomplish the work; but they do not explain why the torments should\nbe everlasting; as men are themselves short-lived, one would think a\nreasonable superstition might have limited the fire-torture to, say,\ntwice the length of mortal life!\n\nOur _Literati_ will readily recognise some parts of this horrible\nsuperstition--perhaps the main features, as Oriental--going back to the\ndimmest dawn of tradition, and to the early and grotesque forms of the\nhuman imagination, dark and uninstructed. The _Hell_, however, is a\nterrific expansion of the horrible, suited to these Strange Barbarians.\n\nBesides these great deities, there are Arch-angels, Angels, Saints\nmale and female, Spirits good and bad--the latter _Imps_ of Satan\n(whatever the word may mean), who enter into human beings, and take\non the human form: in this disguise, called Ghosts, Wizards, Bogies,\nWitches. However, good people can tell these devilish _Imps_, and avoid\nthem (so they be _good_, that is, true worshippers of the Idols of the\nSuperstition); for the smell of brimstone sticks to them, and the tail\nand cleft-hoof--inseparable from devil-imps--will always show somewhere\nto _the good_. But, if unawares the Imps catch them, they are only to\nsay _Christ_, or _Jehovah_, or call on some Saint, and the Imp will at\nonce vanish like a vapor!\n\nIt will be seen that this Superstition is as populous with gods and\nspirits as are any in the East, and some of the forms more frightful\nand ridiculous.\n\nThere are dissentients--some, who, not dissenting to the chief gods,\nyet conjecture that the good and bad _spirits_ merely symbolize good\nand bad propensities in human nature. But real objectors are few and\ntimid, afraid of punishment--if not here, then after death. For the\nSuperstition so long rooted has engrafted its terrors in the very\nblood, and men are born with the _Horror_ in them; they can never\nfree themselves from it. A few, however, do dissent; but, like our\n_Literati_, they do not care to oppose vulgar ignorance openly, nor is\nit safe; they feel a contempt, but repress its too-marked expression.\n\"Why render themselves uselessly odious?\" they say. The Priests, very\nlikely, often disbelieve much of what they say; but not unlikely their\nemoluments (_livings_) have some effect upon their conduct, though not\nupon their private convictions. In our Flowery Land there is a maxim:\n\"A common man's brain is in his belly.\"\n\nI have had a High Bonze say to me, when I have suggested some\nobjections, \"Oh, we do not know anything about such things; the\nmorality is good, and we need a devil for women, children, and the\ncommon people: it is safer to let things alone.\"\n\n\"But,\" I have rejoined, \"_Is_ it quite well, in the long run, to teach\nfalsely?\"\n\n\"I do not say it is well to teach _falsely_. I said, I do not know--who\ndoes? Men more learned than I believe strongly, men wiser than I\nhave \"gone to the stake and perished by slow torture of fire,\" made\n_martyrs_ (we have no such word) of themselves, rather than deny these\nthings. They were probably right. I simply take things as they are.\"\n\n\"But,\" I replied, \"surely misguided fanaticism, of which the world is\nfull, is proof of nothing whatever, unless of the sincerity of the\nmadman--not always of that.\"\n\n\"My dear Ah-Chin, you are very quick, and no fool (I beg pardon), but\nyou do not understand it. The Superstitious parts are mere forms; and\nas to the _horrors_, as you call them, I think them indispensable; they\nare better than the Police.\" (The Police are the officers who arrest\noffenders in the streets and public places.)\n\nThe Bonzes who talk in this way are, usually, what are derisively\ntermed \"hunting and fishing\" Bonzes, not remarkable for strictness\nof conduct, though quite as likely to stick to the Temples, like our\nBonzes; they are not likely to pull down the roof which shelters them.\nThe Superstition is less revered than formerly, and its wilder parts\nare less obtrusive. Its pretensions are not moderated in terms, but\nthe practice is more moderate. Sects do not put each other to death, at\npresent, though so much of the old bitterness remains that no one can\nsay what horrors might follow upon unexpected changes. Gradually wise\nmen endeavour to drop out of sight the Jewish and Priestly creations,\nand, inculcating morality, take the _Christ-God_ as symbol of Charity,\nand his moral precepts as the basis of a moral Philosophy; or (to\nbe less offensive to the Superstition) _Christian Philosophy_. In\nthis way they seize hold of what is true in the Great Idolatry, and\nendeavour to ignore the grosser parts altogether. They hope to bring\nabout a rational worship without violence, by a gradual disuse and\nforgetfulness of the irrational, and are willing to yield something to\nignorance, if they can by that means, in the end, enlighten it. They\nallow to Christ an exalted character, large in the divine faculty,\nand divine as man is divine in possessing that faculty--to say, _the\nmoral_. In this, much as we see in our exalted _Confutze_, who lived\nand taught long before the period ascribed to Christ, and from whom the\nWestern tribes, doubtless, received their moral notions.\n\nThe religion of Wise men is the same at all times and everywhere.\nWherever some intellectual culture exists, men will be found who\nunderstand and practise the rules of morality; and wherever this is\ngeneral, there is the higher civilisation. This higher civilisation,\nresting upon a general morality among a people, has for its base a\nrational recognition of the Sovereign Lord and man's dependency and\naccountability to Him; _Father of men_; and Himself the source of this\nmorality. He, _in this faculty, reveals Himself_, and shows to man\n_his_ sole claim to a divine relationship.\n\nThis higher civilisation does not mistake intellectual achievement\nas its title to enlightenment. The sharp and active brain is\nquite consistent with the base and low; and may be indifferent to\nsuperstitions and degrading idolatries. But the moral faculty, active\nand large, at once refines and exalts the intellect; then men are truly\n_wise_, and degrading superstitions die.\n\nThe object, then, to which the true worshipper aims, everywhere, is\nto bring man out of a debased into an enlightened recognition of the\nSupreme Lord and of this simple relationship; to teach that the human\nrace form one family, united indissolubly to each other, and to the\nSupreme Lord, by the divine moral faculty, to which the intellect\nis subordinate; that by this they may be all truly enlightened,\nand worship simply and truly, with grateful and serene trust, the\nSupreme Lord and Father of all. This worship can never be other than\nbeneficent. It is only the expression of gratitude; the desire for\nbetter wisdom, for still larger charity, a well-doing and serene life,\nat peace with itself and all beside.\n\nTo a civilisation resting upon this simple and direct worship and\nmorality, few barbarians have any perception; their pride and gross\nsuperstitions have made it impossible.\n\nThe temples are often very grand and beautiful, built of hewn stone,\nwith lofty domes, towers, bells, and spires. The priests are very\nnumerous, and divided into many ranks. The lowest are the curates,\nwho do the \"_dirty_\" work, as the English phrase it. They are but\nlittle better than beggars, though mentally often superior to those who\nhalf-starve them, whilst the higher ranks (by whom they are hired) live\nluxuriously.\n\nThe _Sacred Writings_ say that Christ was Himself a mendicant, and\nthat his first followers were but little better; that he denounced,\nin bitter terms, all pride and luxury; that the true object of life\nwas not to think of oneself, but of others; to give to the poor, help\nthe distressed, and the like. In truth, this benevolence and the moral\nprecepts of Christ (as I have already said) are its _salt_ [pho-zi].\n\nI have, in the temples, heard a High-Caste Priest eloquently exalt\nthis benevolence, and pointing out the divine charity of the _Master_\n(as Christ is often called),--heard him say, \"My brethren, give to the\npoor, help the suffering, do good whenever you can, give your all to\nChrist.\"\n\nI have said, \"This is excellent; I will talk with this benevolent\nBonze.\" On one occasion I did so. The High-Caste had dined; I was\nushered into his presence; the fruits and the wine were still before\nhim. I approached and bowed low before him, and dared to ask, \"Is your\nillustrious body well?\" He slightly nodded, and waved me to a seat. I\nexpressed my admiration of his benevolent morality, as shown in his\nexalted _invocation_ in the Temple. \"Oh, that was of course; we do\nnot rely upon morality.\" I begged pardon, but did not understand. He\nadded: \"Morals are well, in their way. Charity is a good thing, if the\npurpose be sanctified; but nobody is saved by his goodness.\" He saw my\nbewilderment. \"Oh, I deplore your darkness; I grieve over the errors,\ntoo fatal, even in our Christian land.\" I could only bow. He continued:\n\"When will the darkness of superstition give way, in the East, to our\nglorious religion? When will the worship of Christ spread over the\nwhole benighted world?\" I ventured to hint that I had called to speak\nmy thought of his noble benevolence. \"Oh, yes, we must give. But the\ntrue worship--knowledge of, and belief in, the _Redeemer_--ah! that is\nthe only means of salvation; those are the vital things.\" I said, \"The\npoor are everywhere, and need help.\" He looked at me suspiciously for a\nmoment, and then brightened; he saw I had not come to ask for anything.\n\"Yes; the Scriptures say, 'The poor ye will always have with ye,' and\nwe cannot alter it.\" \"I am told that your Low-Caste Priests are good\nmen, and do nearly all the work. I know one of these who is very kind.\nYour benevolence is like our _Confutze_, who had a tender regard for\nthe poor and distressed.\"\n\n\"Ah, our divine _Master_ taught charity; but one must go higher than\nthat.\" \"Pardon my poor mind, but do you _not_ really give to the poor,\nin your temples, as your exalted Wisdom taught?\" \"Ah-Chin, you mistake;\nbut one must overlook your darkness of mind--no offence--_Society_\ntakes all I can spare, and I give to Curates from my revenue.\"\n\"Society? I do not comprehend.\" \"Well, no; you know nothing of the\nincessant calls. We must visit and receive visits; keep up equipages,\nservants; then there are always poor relations, and the poor Curates\n(these are the 'poor relations' of our order).\" \"But the Curates are\npoorly paid, I am told, and deserving.\" \"The Curates are well enough;\nbut more fuss is made than need be. I was a Curate, Ah-Chin, myself.\"\n\"Your illustrious did not need aid, perhaps?\" \"Well, yes; I got\nCurate-fare--cold shoulders of mutton, and other colder shoulders.\" I\nsaw that there was something which I was not to understand. \"Pardon,\nbut the _Society_ is not to be put before the Christ-God?\" \"I beg, sir,\nyou speak not in that way. I pardon much to your darkness. Do not again\nprofane our blessed and holy religion.\"\n\nThis alarmed me; I did not know what portended. I bowed very low,\nand humbly craved permission to take my leave. I really feared\npunishment--perhaps of the _Cangue_, or pan-tsee. I afterwards knew, no\nmore than the reproof of the High-Bonze was imminent; though, had the\ncommon people caught a _pagan Chinee_ who had dared to speak, in their\nnotion, disrespectfully of their Idols, he would be fortunate to have\nno worse treatment than a _ducking in a horse-pond_ [phu-it-mu-dsi-wo].\n\nWhat but slow progress is to be expected when a people--even the\n_Literati_--are so superstitious? for the errors there, make obstacles\neverywhere. It is but just now that nearly the whole population of the\nprovince of Ireland (one-third of the kingdom) have been relieved from\nmaintaining the English Idolatry, though they detested it.\n\nThe intolerance of the devotees prevents better men from reforming\nabuses, even in the Temples. If a Priest dare to moderate the excessive\nabsurdities of the Superstition, he at once endangers his _Living_,\nand is likely to be degraded and driven forth to neglect and poverty.\n\nI, myself, knew a Wise Priest of rank, who very innocently published\nsome comments upon the _Sacred Writings_, wherein he showed that\nthe statements as they stood were simply impossible. Now, as I have\nsaid, the _Sacred Writings_ are worshipped; and to doubt that they\nare the words of Jah is horrible--formerly punished by death, now by\ndegradation, _excommunication_, and loss of revenue. This poor man did\nnot express any doubt; he merely pointed out an error, which might be\nthere _somehow_, and which he thought, in his simplicity, should be\nremoved or explained. But the _Canon_ [ban-gwo] of the Superstition\nallowed of no comment of that sort as to the Word of Jehovah! and\ncursed out of the Temples, with his Priest-robe torn off, and his money\nstript from him, the daring _blasphemer_ [zw-an] must go!\n\nThis is an astonishing _Canon_; for if one allows that four thousand\nyears ago Jehovah spoke words which were _then_ inscribed--if one\nallows that the Jewish Priests kept annals and chronicles, and down\nthrough different ages preserved and added to their histories--if\none allows that the followers of Christ after his death recorded\nsome things concerning his life and his teachings, and that other\nfollowers wrote letters upon these matters--yet, one must also allow\nthat all these writings were written at different periods, for\ndifferent purposes, and in different and scattered records; all in\nobscure and unknown tongues; that they have been copied, re-copied,\ntranslated--that there are various versions--that, in respect of their\nmeaning, and even of their right to be called a part of the Word, the\nhighest and best cannot agree! Yet, through all the changes of great\nperiods of time--through darkness, and wars, and every sort of ignorant\ncredulity--through everything! _every word_ of this huge collection of\nObscure and Ancient Literature, and of an Obscure and Barbarous People,\nremains exactly as originally delivered by Jah! \"Oh, certainly,\" says\nhis devotee, \"because _He has preserved them_.\" \"Yes; but when a\nstatement is absolutely impossible--as where 'the water covered the\nwhole earth.'\" \"Oh, the _Word_ does not deal with Science.\" I think\nnot; Jah was not a god of science--he was, in fact, just as ignorant as\nthe Jew-Priests who pretended to speak his _Word_!\n\nYet this inconceivable _Canon_ goes further, and declares that this\n_Word_ is the absolute, and only, and perfect _Revelation_ of the Deity\nto man; that it contains the only TRUTH, and is the only way by which\nman, _under damnation already_, can have _any_ hope, however small, of\nescaping the everlasting fire of hell! Upon this _Canon_ all the Sects\nof the Western Barbarians erect their _Idolatries_--they call them\nChurches; but, as we have seen, they are for ever fighting as to the\nmeaning of these very Sacred Writings!\n\nAnother _Canon_ is, that Christ is the very God (Jah), and that the\nHoly Ghost is also the very God. And to deny this _Canon_ is to go to\nHell! Nor does it at all matter that one has never heard of this, nor\nthat he could have never heard. The whole race of man before Christ\nwas born, to this very hour, are either burning, and will surely burn,\nin everlasting fires of Hell, unless they have _believed_ in this\nCanon! And Jah contrived that all this should be exactly so; though\nhe did also plan from all time that his Son, Christ, should go down\nto the world and get himself put _to death_; and thus the great Jah,\nappeased by the sight of his Son _dying on a cross_, should be so far\nsoftened that some would escape Hell! Only a very few; because no one\ncould escape unless he knew, and believed, and accepted, and _was born_\ninto the very blood of this son! A mystery so incomprehensible, that\nChristians do not pretend to solve it, and are always trembling for\nfear that they may not have been _born again_!\n\nHow, under these circumstances, as Jah cruelly neglected to let\nthe _Heathen_ know that they could be saved--(indeed, they suspect\nno danger)--the good-hearted devotees of the Barbarians employ\nBonzes to go over the great Seas to the _Heathen_, to carry them\nthe _glad tidings_! These delegates from the Barbarians are called\n_Missionaries_, and the Temples and devotees are full of prayers and\ninvocations for the Salvation of the Heathen! by which is meant the\nworship of the Barbarians duly adopted in our Central Kingdom, and in\nother regions of the wide world not under the sway of these Idolaters!\n\nBut our Flowery Kingdom, from so long ago as dynasty _Whey-Song_, has\nknown of these missionaries; and we know of some now amongst us. They\nare harmless enough, and quite fully understand how to adapt themselves\nto circumstances, and draw the money necessary to their support. The\nBonzes of the Roman Sect are the wisest, and care for nothing very\nidolatrous; if a _convert_ will go so far as to be baptised [Wa-shti]\nthey are quite content. They seek to be useful, and keep the obnoxious\nfeatures of the Superstition out of sight.\n\nThere are also some Jews in our Central Kingdom. They have been known\nin some provinces from a time long before the supposed birth of Christ.\n\nAnother _Sect_ of the region of the Western Barbarians (in the Eastern\nparts), who worship a god named _Mohammed_--a _Sect_ merely an\noffshoot of the Jews, from whom they adopted the most part of their\nsuperstition, and equally fierce and intolerant--penetrated into our\nFlowery Land soon after its rise. It was about six hundred years ago\nthat they established a slight hold amongst us, and are still to be\nfound--never here in their weakness exhibiting any of the savagery of\nstrength. In a large portion of the Western regions they were for ages\nas cruel and destructive as the Christians, and, in fact, waged wars\nwith them for absolute mastery, during which all the horrors usual to\nthose dreadful Barbarians terrified and maddened mankind. Finally,\nthese two Sects, _Christian and Mohammedan_ (so styled), divided the\nwhole region of the Western Barbarians among themselves! and from that\ntime have been less quarrelsome with each other, than have the _Sects_\nof the two great divisions in their intestine conflicts.\n\nThus, it will be acknowledged that the Barbarians are well disposed\nsometimes towards us,--or at any rate the devotees of their\nSuperstition are,--and we must gratefully thank them for their sincere\nanxiety for the salvation of our _souls_; for our _bodies_ that is\nanother matter. They think us ignorant, even of the ordinary rules of\nmorality. They do not know that before Greece or Rome had appeared\nin history, our worship of the Sovereign Lord and our moral precepts\nwere established, purely, simply, and that our annals show that the\nGrecian and Roman culture largely borrowed from ours, though not the\n_Superstitions_. These were derived, probably, from some source common\nto the Western Barbarians, likely Egyptian, and though modified by\nhabits of tribes, retained more or less of those original traits which\nappear in all.\n\nThe Temples are numerous, though often quite deserted except by the\nBonzes and their servants. The same revenues are taken by the Bonze\nwhether there be any worshippers or not, and sometimes the prayers are\nsaid or sung to empty forms (seats)--not more empty than the prayers.\n\nNext in rank to Curates come Rectors, who enjoy good _Livings_\n[mo-tsi], and have fine houses and gardens. The other higher ranks,\nare Arch-Bishops, Bishops, called Lords [tchou], who live in stone\n_palaces_, and have great revenues; but Society robs them of the larger\nportion of this revenue,--a barbarous injustice,--leaving the poor\nLords quite destitute. I was told this; but I never happened to meet\nwith a starved Bishop.\n\nThese _Tchou_-Bonzes intermarry with the High-Castes, perform the\nmarriage ceremony for them, wait upon the Queen with invocations to\nthe gods--baptize royal infants; that is, sprinkle them when eight\ndays old, in the Temples with invocations, with many ceremonies,\nafter which they are safe from the devil and the dreadful Hell; these\nare the chief duties of their exalted office. As great _lay-lords_\n(that is Lords not of the soul but of the clay--lay), they sit in the\ngreat Law-making _Council_; where their function is, to see to it that\nno law be made which in any way can injure the temples, or their own\nrevenues and powers. One does not see that they are remarkable for the\npractice of the virtues which they teach; nor that they are meek and\nlowly followers of the Lamb (Christ-god); or that they very often \"wash\nthe feet of the disciples\"--although they are commanded in the _Sacred\nWritings_ to do these things; and also to succour the distressed, give\nto the poor, and other like acts of charity. I should have been pleased\nto see a Bishop kneeling and washing the feet of some devotee! but I\nnever did. They discharge those duties which they owe to Society with\nhonourable punctuality: keeping up neat equipages, sleek horses, and\npious servants; and wearing the garb of their order with a scrupulous\nexactness, even to the shoe-buckles.\n\nThey quote the example of the Christ-god, who, when on the world, made\nfrom common water _good wine_; and are very choice respecting this\narticle. As to charity, they are so robbed by Society, that, what with\ngifts for the _Heathen_, and poor relations (for whom they are also\nexpected to get good _Livings_ in the Temples), they have but little\nto spare. Then, too, \"Charity begins at home\" (the _Sacred Writings_\ndeclare), and he who does not take care of himself, and those who are\ndependent upon him, \"is worse than a Heathen\" (This is again from the\n_Sacred_ words). For those poor and benighted creatures, sunk in\ndreadful idolatries, indeed, something must be put into the Missionary\nbox!\n\nThe different _Sects_ quarrel as to particular modes of Worship in the\nTemples. Some will have candles lighted, to please the idols; others\nsay, they do not need candles, and are offended by the smell. Some say,\nYou should make Invocations kneeling; others say, standing. Some say,\none should face to the East, others say, to the North. Some say, you\nshould pray aloud; others say, silent prayers are more acceptable. And\nvery sharp quarrels and _new Sects_ arise upon these matters. None are\nallowed to worship in Temples but devotees of the High-Caste Sect. All\nothers must worship in Temples not dignified by a loftier name than\n_Conventicle_, _Chapel_, or the like.\n\nI will state, briefly, what is the ceremony of Idolatry in the great\n_Queen-pope_ Sect. She is worshipped in the Invocations, and receives,\nwith her children, a place in the prayers.\n\nWhen the great bells sound from the high, stone towers, the High-Castes\ngo, richly dressed, into the Temples, uncover and bow the heads to the\nIdol, in silence--making Invocations, silently. By the command of the\nJewish _Sacred Writings_ the Seventh day (so, continuously, for ever)\nis devoted to the grand Worship in the Temples. This is a marked thing\namong the Western Barbarians--this devotion of one day in every seven\nto the Worship of Jah--as ordered in the Sacred Word. It is declared to\nbe Jah's day--_Holy_-day. And it is so sacred, that there is danger of\nHell to him who\n\n \"Does any work or play\n Upon the sacred day,\"\n\nas the mongrel verse-makers of the _Superstition_ have it! And the\nPriests vehemently denounce all who do not worship upon that day.\n\nSome object to so great strictness; and the quarrel, as usual, is\nbitter between the strict and the not-so-strict Holy-day worshippers.\n\nThose not-so-strict think that the poor, who work six days, should be\nallowed to go to the places of amusement on the seventh, and enjoy\nharmless recreations. The strict say they should be punished for\ndesecrating the day by their neglect of worship; yet the poor cannot\ngo in dirt and rags to the Temples. The High-Castes go there in rich\nattire, and would be incommoded by the poor--indeed, the High and Low\nCastes never mingle, not even in their worship. In truth, not many of\nany rank attend upon the Priests in worship. The devotees are mostly\nold women and older men, a few young people attracted by opposite\nattraction of sex, children and servants; a few pauper children may be\nhuddled into a dark corner for fear of offending the idols.\n\nThe Priests face the Idol, and make Incantations, which are repeated,\nage after age, without any alteration; no Priest dare to make any the\nleast change; the wrath of the gods would follow.\n\nOne peculiarity is, that the most abject _confessions_ are made, by\nPriests and devotees, of heinous offences--making eternal punishment\nfitly their due. They beg for pardon and that _salvation_ (meaning\ndeliverance from the awful Hell) may be granted, not for any good\nin them, but wholly for the sake of the Son--the _Christ_. On my\nfirst attendance in a Temple, when I heard these fearful confessions\nand looked upon the fine women; the carefully dressed worshippers, I\nthought, \"How dreadful, these High-Castes such wretches--incredible!\"\n\nI afterwards discovered that the _sins_ [ly-ie], the offences\nconfessed, were merely _ecclesiastical_ (we have no term like it);\nnobody ever really confesses any wrong which he may have committed.\n\nThe grand act of worship is, however, the _Creed_ (here again in our\nFlowery Land we have no term)--an Invocation and Declaration wherein\nall swear, under the awful penalty of eternal burnings in Hell and\ntorments of Satan for ever, that they believe and worship all points of\nthe _Superstition_ with thankful hearts and undoubting minds. Repeating\nafter the Priest, all standing, facing the Idol, uncovered, with eyes\ndowncast and deep abasement.\n\nThe Incantations do not differ from the Invocations, only they are\ndroned out in songs, more dismally, perhaps. The burden of both is\nto deliver the _true_ worshippers from \"the wiles of the flesh and\nthe devil\"; to overthrow, if possible, this awful demon, and to save\nsinners, of whom the worshippers declare themselves, in a hundred\ndifferent ways, to be chief, \"_miserable offenders_\" [ka-nt-lm-mbi].\nThese, and lofty exaltation of the _Christ-God_ and of the Father Jah,\nwho, when He had given his word that nothing could save man from Hell,\ngraciously allowed the Jews to crucify the Son, that in the Son's\nsufferings He, Jah, might let off some of the sufferings of mankind.\nPossibly some of the present worshippers might be among the lucky\n_saved_. For this _salvation_ endless praises are to be Sung in the\nTemples below; and for ever and for ever in the great Heavens, through\nthe infinite eternal worlds without end.\n\nA Hymn of Praise in which all join ends the act of worship. The Priest\n_blesses_ the people and invokes the mercy of the gods; and they,\nmaking due obeisance to the idols, retire in silence or to the music of\nthe great organs.\n\nA special act of worship, or Incantation, is always made to the\n_Triune-god_, that is, the _Three-in-one_, called HOLY TRINITY\n(_Threenity_). To omit this would, in the opinion of devotees, be so\nterrible a thing that no one would dare to stay a moment, fearing that,\nlike Korah in the _Sacred Writings_, the very world would open itself\nand swallow them up. This _three-in-one_ seems like a _Hindoo_ god.\n\nThe Bonzes attend upon the sick and the dying, moderating their\nfears of damnation by insisting upon the most abject devotion to the\nSuperstition, and intimating that, if they heartily grieve over their\noffences, and with undoubting minds believe in all the points of the\n_Creed_, then they may receive the _Sacraments_--that is, _Sacred\nMeats_; which having received, the devil and Hell may be set at\ndefiance. These Sacred Meats are symbols of the very _body and blood_\nof Christ--a shocking _rite_, borrowed wholly from the old, savage\nJews, who held that a _Sacrifice_ must be offered up to appease the\nwrathful Jah on almost any occasion, and who sometimes even devoted\nhuman victims.\n\nThe Bonzes, in general, perform the Marriage Ceremonies, which they\nwill have to be a Sacred _rite_ in their Superstition, though some\n_Sects_ think otherwise. However, the High-Castes do not consider a\nMarriage without a Bonze safe; some evil to the children, or other\ncalamity, might ensue. Thus the Bonzes, for their services in this\nmatter, obtain consideration and good fees [tin-tin].\n\nAfter all, however, with the lowest Caste the Superstition is not much\nmore than a _Fright_; its morality does not touch them, nor those\nthings which refine. They have only a dim and low idea of the Sovereign\nLord--debased, in so much notion as they do have, by the Jewish\ndebasement. The devil-and-Hell part is familiar to them, and, in truth,\nfits well to the origin of the Barbarous tribes, and to their rude\nand savage character. As I have said, the Upper Castes consider this\nportion of their Superstition the really valuable part, in practical\nuse. All evidence in the Courts, and every sanction, touching important\ninterests or statements, rest upon this hold upon the fears of the\ncommon people. \"Oh\" (as an Englishman once said to me), \"we must keep\nthe devil and his _hot place_ in our service, I tell you, Ah-Chin; or\nwe should have 'the devil to pay' in good earnest!\"\n\nIt is very difficult to change the Superstitions of a people, because\nrooted in their fears; and, in a matter wherein the imagination has\nchief power, and nothing can be _known_, even honest men of wisdom fear\nradical changes; they prefer to bear inconveniences, and dread the\neffect of _new doctrines_ upon ignorant masses.\n\nPriests, and the varied interests, and large establishments and\nrevenues--in fact, a great portion of the whole community--are\nconcerned in maintaining the Superstition, on selfish grounds, or think\nthat their own interests are involved. The higher orders regard the\n_Established_ condition of things in Worship and in the State as too\n_Sacred_ to be touched. They denounce all who endeavour, in any faint\ndegree, to suggest reforms, as \"_infidel_\" [un-ti-dsi]--a term of\ndeepest reproach--agitators, who covertly would overthrow \"our Temples,\nour Idols, and the Queen-Pope herself.\"\n\nBut they cannot wholly suppress the Thinkers; [kog-ti-te] (as the\n_reformers_ are called); and these honestly think that some revision\nmay be made with safety and advantage. They are sneered at by the\nlarger part of the _literati_, and by all the priests, as _Tinkers_.\nA tinker is one who mends and patches, not a real artisan; and the\nmajority will have it that nothing in England requires mending or\npatching. They are also stigmatised, sarcastically, as members of\na _Mutual Admiration_ Society. A society where the members laud\neverything written or said by any other member; and where, as the\nmembers think, all true wisdom alone illuminates the surrounding\ndarkness. I suspect this society is a _mith_ [pho-gti]; that the true\nsense of the sarcasm is, that the Thinkers overrate the value of their\npublished thoughts, and that wisdom will not die with them. Certainly,\nsome of the thoughts which I have seen in books, though not so gross\nand hateful as the Idolatry, are quite as useless. Only one thing I\ndo respect them for--they do not subscribe to the pretensions of the\npriest; and are really influencing the people by giving them hints of\nvalue. They do act upon the upper classes, at least, with a reforming\neffect.\n\nI have not referred to obscure _sects_, of which there are many.\nSome of these shout and howl; some keep absolute silence; some lash\nthemselves into a sort of phrensy, and fall down in fits, fancying that\nthey are possessed by the _Holy Spirit_. Some will only be _baptised_\nby going into a river, and there, under the Incantations of the Priest,\nbe violently plunged all over in the water, both women and men. Still,\nall of these, and many others, hold to the _Sacred Writings_ and the\nother Idolatries: the main points are alike in all.\n\nThe Roman Pope has many devotees among the English Barbarians; and was,\nnot long ago, the Great and only Head. But a vile and cruel king, who\nwished to enjoy a woman and divorce his wife, with whom he had lived\nfor many years, and by whom he had children, quarreled with the Roman\nPope, because he would not suffer this bad thing to be done; and the\nEnglish Barbarians, who disliked a foreign Pope, and the fierce chiefs\nabout this king, even some of the priests of English birth, urged\nhim to proclaim himself to be Pope in England, and to seize upon the\nrevenues which the Pope had received from the English, and all the\nlands and properties of great value, which before-time had been given\nto the Temples and to the Priests. This was done; this king seized upon\nthe wealth, and threw down the worship of the Roman Pope in England,\nand declared himself to be the new god in England--the Pope! And the\nEnglish Barbarians worshipped, and have continued to worship, this new\nPope accordingly. And some who could not honestly worship the new\nidol, and dared to adhere to the Roman, were burnt to death! Indeed\nthis new idolatry was not introduced into England without terrible\nconsequences. Massacres, burnings, imprisonments, wars, horrible\ncrimes--persecutions, destruction of families, robbing, plundering--not\neven to this day have all the evil consequences ceased; though this bad\nruler made this change in this particular of the great Superstition\nmore than 300 years ago.\n\nThus, our Central Kingdom may see how powerfully Idolatry and\nSuperstition are entrenched among the English Barbarians. A System\ninterwoven with the very texture of their civilization; supporting,\nand, in turn, supported by the State; mixed up with customs and\ntraditions, and endeared by its connection with family interests;\nrich in its possessions; powerful in all the Halls of Learning, and\nin its influence upon the fortunes and dignities of men; boasted of\nfor its learning, for its history, and for its refining and reforming\nteachings; the _English Church_ (as those Barbarians call their grand\nIdolatry) seems likely to stand for many generations. Yet agencies are,\nslowly, at work, which will remove the dark and horrible, and leave the\nsimple and true. The Benevolence of the Sovereign Lord of Heaven never\ntires; and the pure worship and less corrupted morality will make way.\n\nI hope I may be pardoned for the time which I have given to this\nsubject; it is one worthy of deep attention. Besides, a little study\nof the literature and manners of the Western tribes, fastened upon my\nmind the impression that their History was mainly an account of the\nrise and progress of the Christ-god Superstition; and that, hereafter,\nwhoever shall have the pleasing task of writing of their better\ncivilization, will find it to be his main purpose to show the decline\nand extinction of that Superstition.\n\nTo wise men who worship the Supreme Lord only, and accept of His simple\nand direct Morality, there is, in all the broad and immense world,\nbut a _single family_, ruled by Him. When this family recognises and\nworships Him, in direct and true sincerity, and practises the few\nand perfectly simple rules of His benevolent Morality, then it is an\n_enlightened_, civilized family.\n\nThe Western Barbarians do not understand nor practise this Benevolent\nMorality; until they do, their civilization will not be really better\nthan a Barbarism.\n\nWe are not to suppose that a perfect morality will ever obtain,\nbecause man, being two-fold in his nature--divine and bestial--will\nnow be ruled by the one, and now by the other part. The object of all\neducation (discipline) is, therefore, to teach man how he may order\nthese two parts. There is no antagonism [ha-tsi] between them, only it\nis indispensable that the _divine_ part should rule.\n\nThat this may be, the _intellect_ must be cultivated, not in\ndifficulties, but in habits of thinking, of looking, or seeking out; of\nseeing the beauty, the order, the grandeur of the whole divine world.\nThus employed it delights in itself; it feels the Mind like a bright\nthing, flying out to the great seas, and upwards to the everlasting\nstars. It loves to hear, to see, to look at and into everything. It can\nnever cease to employ this delightful mind, thus stimulated in early\nyouth, to exert itself; but it must be exerted innocently, benevolently.\n\nThat the subordination of mind and the animal may be secured, the\nSupreme, the Moral Faculty must, from the earliest years, be touched\nby wise fingers. Ah, how it responds, this divine part; how it, in the\npure and warm glow of unselfish youth, recognises and worships with\nfilial love its Father, the Sovereign Lord!--perceives the moral order\nand harmony, and loves to be orderly and obedient--early perceives that\nthe true business of life is to preserve this order, and enjoy this\npeace.\n\nThus Man, a _moral-minded_ animal, is first of all to be taught to\nunderstand his own nature, and to develop his distinguishing faculty.\nThis done, the bestial part rises not above its office. It, too,\nperforms its proper and useful end; and man is not a divided, but a\nwhole and happy being.\n\nAll education, therefore, rightly considered, aims to this _Integrity_\n[Kom-fu] of a man--this secured, there are no limits to the mere\nobjects of study or of examination.\n\nOur _Literati_, directed many thousands of moons ago, by our exalted\nConfutze and Menzie, who, themselves were imbued with the ancient\nWisdom, are familiar with these simple things. The Western Barbarians,\nmainly devoted first of all to the bestial part; to the enjoyment of\nthe appetites and the passions; sunk in gross Superstitions, only by a\nfew minds begin dimly to see.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nOF THE HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY OF THE ENGLISH.\n\n\nBefore commenting upon the Government, it is useful to speak of the\ngeography and history of the English Barbarians.\n\nThe Kingdom consists of the following: England with Wales and Scotland,\nforming one large island; Ireland, separated by a channel of the seas,\nlying West; and several small groups of islets, scattered about the\nCoasts. It lies Westerly from the great, main Land of the Barbarians,\nfrom which it is separated by a narrow course of the seas. England and\nthe Main Land form the region designated Europe. The whole Kingdom\nsurpasses not in area or population some of our Celestial provinces:\nthe extent being in the English square miles some 110 thousand [Si-re],\nand in people some 32 millions [Ken-ty]. In such narrow limits there\nare no rivers--only small streams, which, near the sea, owing to the\nflux and reflux of the great waters, become broad and deep.\n\nIn our Science and in our Annals the whole region and people are known\nas one only--but the different petty tribes are distinguished in our\nwaters by the forms and colours of the _flags_, shown upon the masts\nof the Barbarian vessels. The English are less in people and in lands\nthan many others; but by their fierceness in war, and the multitude of\ntheir big ships, they esteem themselves to be the most powerful of all.\n\nThe first account of them is recorded by one of the Romans, who, in\nour dynasty, _Han_, crossed the narrow sea from a Roman province,\nand entered into the island. It was then a Wilderness, and among the\nforests lived a few savages, clothed in skins. Sometime after, the\nRomans conquered the country, and established a Roman province--their\ndominion lasting four hundred [qua-cet] years--contemporaneous with our\ndynasty, _Hewhan_.\n\nDuring the dynasties, _Han_ and _Hewhan_, the various tribes\nsurrounding the Roman provinces, grown more populous and better\nacquainted with the Military art, crowded, more and more, upon the\nRomans; and, gradually, destroyed their power. They were forced to\nleave England.\n\nOn their departure, and for several ages after, down to our dynasty,\n_Song_, the history of the Country is merely a tale of ceaseless\nstruggles among the different savage tribes from the Main Land, to\nplunder and subdue it. The civilization disappeared. Nearly all signs\nof the Roman occupancy became obliterated; and the knowledge of letters\nwould have been lost, but that the Priests who accompanied some of the\nsavage chiefs had among them some of the Roman learning. These Priests\nand chiefs had adopted the worship of the new Christ-god.\n\nAt length, one of these invading tribes having fairly mastered the\ncountry, and established a show of regular authority, the germs of\nknowledge began to grow. The victorious tribe had lands also on the\nmain parts; fierce and warlike, it endeavoured to extend its power;\nand repeatedly made assaults upon others of the Barbarians of those\nchief parts. In these, the remains of the Roman civilization were\nconsiderable, and the knowledge of letters more common.\n\nThe position of the English, and their need of communication, made\nvessels indispensable; and they learned to build and to sail many\nships. However, but little progress in civilization was made till\nour dynasty, _Ming_; when the Sovereign, then a Woman, called by\nthe Barbarians, _Queen_, sent the first Embassy to our Central\nKingdom--bearing gifts, and humbly approaching our Illustrious, begging\npermission to trade at one of our ports on the sea.\n\nFrom that time to the present, the annals of these Barbarians are\nbut little more than records of plundering expeditions into distant\nregions; of their fierce slaughters; their cunning or bold stratagems\nto extend trade, and establish dominion for the sake of trade and\nplunder. To obtain trade, by means fair or foul; to get strongholds\nabroad and subjugate others--these have been the great objects of the\nrulers and the people.\n\nBy their ships, manned with the most ignorant and debased, taught only\nin the work of sailing and fighting; stimulated by love of plunder, in\nwhich the meanest have a share; the very name of these Barbarians has\nbecome terrible in all the distant seas.\n\nThey first appeared within the waters of our Central Kingdom, in the\ndynasty _Tsing_, but did not venture then to assault our unoffending\npeople; and only, by cunning and with low prostrations and humility,\nsought to traffic, in such way as should be acceptable to our\nIllustrious. Further time was looked to and greater force before\nshowing their fierceness!\n\nThey have since seized nearly all the maritime parts of the Hindoos,\nand, penetrating the country with savage bands, have slaughtered the\ninoffensive people, and robbed the treasuries of Princes and the\nTemples of immense riches. They have, finally, subjugated the chief\nprovinces of the Hindoos, and yearly bear away from them the ancient\nrevenues.\n\nThrowing off disguise, in our celestial seas, these Barbarians at\nlength discovered their true character. To save our people from the\neffects of a dreadful poison, to which the lower orders had become\nhabituated, our Illustrious prohibited the importation of this thing,\ncalled by the English, Opium (Zle-psi). But these disregarded the just\nrequest; wished to pour upon us enormous amounts for the sake of the\ngains which the bad traffic yielded, and which was monopolised by them;\nand, when nothing else would serve, assaulted our unoffending people,\nfell with fire and sword upon our province of Quang-tun, and, rushing\nupon other maritime parts with their great ships, armed with prodigious\ncannon, threatened to burn and destroy. In our peaceful Kingdom we\nhad no need of such things; we had no means to meet these destructive\nengines, contrived by _Christ-god_ worshippers; and our Illustrious,\nto save further dreadful mischiefs to our unprotected people, granted\ntrade to these selfish and cruel Barbarians! Yet this benevolence\nof our Illustrious only served to encourage additional demands; and\nwe all remember how, coming with more ships, swifter with _steam_,\nand greater guns and men, these impious defiers of the Sovereign and\nHeavenly Justice have more recently fallen upon the Northern provinces,\nand slaughtered and robbed our people, our palaces, and even the\nprecincts of our Illustrious himself! Who, awaiting and appealing to\nthe Sovereign Lord of Heaven, doubts not the due chastisement of crime,\nwhich, in due time, shall heavily fall!\n\nMeantime, in all other parts of the great Outer Seas, these English\nvisited the coasts with their fire-ships, and compelled the natives to\ntrade, either by fraud or by open war. In the great Sea towards the\nsunset, they, in this way, settled upon many Lands; and, in the course\nof some generations, their settlements in those regions, wishing to\ntrade with others beside the English (which these would not allow)\nrevolted; drove away the armed bands which were sent to subdue them,\nand formed a new power.\n\nIn this way, about 100 years ago, the Barbarians, called American\n[Mel-i-kan], arose. Their ships are known in our Central Kingdom by\na flag, named \"Starry,\" because of the _Stars_ [Zen-ti] which are\npainted upon it. These people are ardent for trade, but not so mad\nand reckless; and not aggressive in their intercourse with others.\nThey are not so domineering and haughty--humbly submitting themselves,\nin general, to the Son of Heaven, making tribute, and seeking his\nIllustrious protection to their trade and to their ships in our Central\nWaters.\n\nDuring these events, the English Barbarians also sent their poor\npeople and criminals into the Lands of the far South Seas, to make\nnew places for their poor to toil in, to get rid of them, and to make\nsafe, distant places, to keep their criminals in; subduing the tribes\nin those parts--thus making more trade. And in this way, and with\ntheir many big ships and cannons, they boast that they will bring the\nwhole immense world, either to be tributaries, or to be completely\nsubjective. And they please their devotees, because they say that this\nsubjugation will \"_Convert_\" all the Pagans to the worship of the gods\nof their Superstition--and this great boon will abundantly compensate\nfor all the wrongs and atrocities committed! In fact, they impiously\npretend that they are commanded to subjugate the Heathen World, that it\nmay be saved from the dreadful Hell!\n\nThe domestic events have not been important; though the Barbarians\nthemselves think everything to be important which happens amongst\nthem. They fancy that \"Civilization and Progress\" (famous words\nwith them) depend upon the petty disputes arising--sometimes as to\ntheir Superstition, and sometimes as to some trifling thing in their\nCustoms. One of the main events, is the story of a son of one of their\nSovereigns, who drove his father out of the Kingdom, and r\u00ebestablished\nthe Government in such manner, that, ever after, when the matter is\nreferred to, one shall say _Glorious_ [Twang-ba]. As well as I can\nunderstand, the things done were, that whereas, before, the Sovereign\nhad been allowed to worship the Pope, if he wished (but in secret),\nafterwards he should not, but _be_ the English Pope, solely. And,\ninstead of a native dynasty, a foreign, and very base and stupid one,\nhateful to the English, was fastened upon them. These events, an\noutside observer sees, were followed by long-continued discontents,\nand civil war--wherein innocent persons suffered in their persons and\ntheir property; and very many were exiled, and very many were brutally\nmassacred and put to death--not because of any other offence than\nadhering to the ancient Laws, and to the Sovereign whom this base son\nhad dethroned! Yet, of this event, when one speaks of it, one shall\nsay, _Glorious!_!\n\nThe form of government has not changed; but the power has, during these\nperiods, past into the hands of the Aristocracy [Fo-hi]. In the time of\nthe Queen, who sent the humble petition to our Illustrious, the English\nSovereign was Master--being Pope and Ruler; that is, High Priest and\nSovereign. But the people, increasing and growing richer in ships and\nmerchandize, began to feel the intermeddling of the Ruler. Previously,\nthe people had been too poor and too few to be accounted anything; and\ngrew up into an improved condition without notice. They now disliked to\nbe taxed, and began a struggle with the Sovereign to limit his power in\nthis thing--for they said, \"If he can take a _penny_ (a small coin),\nat his own goodwill and pleasure, he can take all.\" Now this is an\nabsurdity--yet, it looked sound; and, at any rate, became the ground\nof the fight between the well-to-do people (the Middle-Caste), and the\nRuler. _This_ would make his will absolute; the _other_ would make\nits will absolute! The Sovereign who first had this opposition seems\nto have been a fool, and the next, a knave--but neither had sufficient\nsense to arm soldiers enough to compel obedience, as was done on the\nMain Land--consequently, after a good deal of wretched fighting between\nthe Sovereign helped by nearly all the High-Caste, and the _next_\nCaste in the Aristocracy and well-to-do people, these last succeeded,\nand put the Sovereign to death. As is always the case, during a civil\nwar, _fanaticism_ arose. It based itself upon two points--the right\nof the people to rule, and the right of the gods of the Superstition,\n_without any Pope_, to be worshipped. This was a departure from the\noriginal dispute only in part; because some had vehemently denied the\nwhole notion of Pope-worshipping; and as the Sovereign was English\nPope, this pretension embittered the strife. Now, the Aristocracy\n(High-Caste) upheld the Pope; but the Second-Caste and the people,\nopposed; and these, at length, for the time, carried all before them;\ndestroyed the King, overthrew his worship as Pope; and established the\ngods of the Superstition, with such severity of worship (especially as\nto the _rites_ and as to the _Seventh-day_), that, _Society_ completely\nchanged. Even the name of the State was changed! The point, of the\n_Rule of the people_, was in this vindicated; for the name of the\nState was--_Commonwealth_; and of the Ruler--_Protector_. Now, this so\n_radical_ change was not real. It was the expression of that extreme\nagony into which Civil War hurries. The strong passions sway--the\nstrongest rule. And the very able military man who organized the troops\ninto the ways of an invincible army, though of the Aristocratic,\nHigh-Caste connection, happened to have adopted the most severe notions\nof the great Superstition; looked upon Christ-god merely as the _Jah_\nof the Jews; wished to make the _Sacred Writings_ the law of the\nLand; and to get himself proclaimed to be the _High Priest_ and ruler\nof this new Jewish State! This remarkable man, with his invincible\ntroops, could not absolutely do this--but he did completely overawe\nand rule the State, causing himself to be declared _Protector of the\nCommonwealth_!\n\nWith the death of this strong man, there being no successor to his\nability, repression soon relaxed; the Aristocracy came out of their\nseclusion; the gloom of fanatical worship brightened in the natural\nlove of rational life. _Society_ rebounded from the low depression;\nancient feelings, habits, sports, reasserted themselves. Communities do\nnot radically change, at once--such a thing to be beneficial, must be\ncautious. A tree, though misshapen, may not be plucked up by the roots\nviolently, and forced into uncongenial soil; to improve its beauty and\nuse, a different method must be sought: only, if the tree be actually\ndying, possibly, a complete and radical change may save it--at any rate\nit is the sole chance!\n\nThe troops, wholly devoted to their late great General, found no one on\nwhom they could rely; and another portion of the Army in the far North,\nwas induced actively to assist the Aristocracy. These, joined by the\nmiddle classes, who had wearied of the too gloomy worship and severe\n_rites_, hastened to recall a Son of him whom they had not long before\nput to death, and place him upon the _Throne_. They declared him to\nbe Sovereign-pope: they restored the old form and name of government;\nand rescinded nearly everything done by the Commonwealth. In this\n_Restoration_ (as the English call it) is another event, considered\nby them, of great importance. In this Restoration (a natural effect\nof the _fanaticism_ largely charged to the greater ignorance of the\nlower castes) the High-Castes again became predominant. They again\ntook influence and power everywhere, and retained the fruits of the\ncivil struggle in their hands. _They_ had aided the resistance to the\narbitrary will of the Sovereign; and they now grasped and enjoyed the\npower wrested from him. They, alone, could impose taxes. No Sovereign\nwould again dare to tax the people (that is, the High-Castes) without\ntheir consent. But _they_ would levy and raise taxes when they pleased.\nThus holding the _Purse_ of the State they had become supreme.\n\nOn the death of this Restored one (who turned out to be so base that\nthe common people often deplored the loss of the late great General),\na brother reigned. This man, as I have said (wishing to worship the\nRome-pope) was driven out by his son, forming the epoch, _Glorious_.\nThe present Queen is of the dynasty then established; and during\nthis period the absorption of power by the High-Caste has gone on.\nTaught by the Slaughter of the late King, his successor feared; and\nthe new dynasty was compelled by the Aristocracy to submit to those\nlimitations of power, which effectually placed authority in their\nhands. To secure this authority, the Sovereign was not allowed any\nmoney to keep troops; and, if, on any pretence, troops were raised,\nthey were immediately refused pay, and forced to be disbanded upon the\nleast suspicion that they would be used to strengthen the Sovereign.\nThe aristocracy had continued to strip him also of all private revenue;\nand had, in fact, reduced him to a dependency upon them for his daily\nsubsistence [Bran-te].\n\nThus, the High-Caste, acting by the forms of the _Grand Council_,\nseized power.\n\nIt is proper to explain the substance and form of this Council.\n\nIt is divided into two parts--_Upper House, and Lower House_.\n\nThe _Upper_ are the Lords [Cheang] of Lands and Lords of the\nTemples--(High-State Sect.)\n\nThe _Lower_ are lords, brothers, sons, nephews, relations, and devoted\nservants of the Upper; and are far more numerous.\n\nNo rule can be made, nor law, without both these bodies consent to it.\nThis they do by asking each one his opinion, and a majority decides.\nEverything of importance must originate in the Lower House, and first\nbe settled there. Then, the will of the Lower House is communicated to\nthe Upper House, and it is ordered to ratify it. The members do so, and\nthe Sovereign (or somebody requested thereto by him) approves (as the\nEnglish politely phrase it); and the thing, so approved, is a new Law.\nNow, no Sovereign dares not _approve_--it might cost him his head. The\nlast one, many years ago, who thought he might risk it, soon gave up\nthe attempt, and died in a madhouse.\n\nIt will be seen, that the power in the Lower House will necessarily\nfall into the hands of any one who can obtain adherents enough to\nhis opinions to secure a majority of members. The most ready debater\n[Qu-iztsi], the coolest and self-possessed, who has made himself master\nof the wishes of the majority; or, who, to these things, or with only a\npart of them, has great wealth and influence--one, in fine, who knows\nand divines what is wanted, and has the ability to lead;--directs and\norders the measures which are to be adopted. This man, who controls the\nLower House, governs the State. He nominates those who shall assist him\nin the government, being the same who aid him in managing the House.\nThus, the Lower House governs by its delegates.\n\nAll these men, who are really a COMMITTEE [ty-gi-te] of the House\nfor the ruling of the Kingdom, act in the name of the Sovereign, and\nreceive the ancient titles of office from him. The ancient forms are\npreserved; and these men, obeying the House, profess to obey the\nSovereign--in fact, the Sovereign is pretended to be the source of\nhonour and of authority; and the very Laws which have been made against\nhis wish are declared to be his Laws!\n\nThus, both the Sovereign and the people are amused. The one, by the\nrespect shown to him, the emoluments and influence of his high office,\nand of his Pope-ship; the others, by some semblance of political\n[in-tri-gsi] power. This consists in calling together a few of the\npeople of second and lower caste, to choose a new member for the Lower\nHouse--but this is quite a comedy, [sham-li] for the most part. It\ngives the ignorant Barbarians a notion of self-importance, and tickles\nthem with the fancy that they really have a part in the government of\nthe State.\n\nWhilst these changes in the ordering of things at home were in\nprogress, the usual fierce and bloody expeditions of these Barbarians\nhad not been suspended.\n\nThe Americans had succeeded in establishing their independent power,\nbut not till they had waged a second war with their late masters,\nscarcely less important to them than the first. For the English, still\nlooking upon them with disdain, insisted upon the right to stop any of\nthe vessels of the Americans upon the high seas, and to seize and carry\naway to their own ships any one whom they pleased. They would do this,\nand force the victims of their insolent cruelty to fight for them in\ntheir horrible war-ships.\n\nThe American Barbarians resisted this outrage; and, forced to fight a\nbloody war, vindicated their just cause; so that never since have the\nEnglish, or any other Barbarians, dared to board or outrage the ships\nor the sailors [mer-tsi] of the Americans.\n\nThis stubborn and brutal barbarity, love of plunder and traffic, have\ninvolved the English during the present dynasty in numberless wars\nbeyond seas. They have internally avoided great commotion, although\nthe low castes have occasionally perished in surprising numbers by\nfamine and disease. In Ireland the depopulation has exceeded anything\nrecorded. The poor people of the Northern parts also, driven away from\ntheir homes, have nearly disappeared, unless in the armed bands sent\nover the sea. With these, the poor and despised Irish are in great\nnumbers also; and, indeed, the strength and ferocity of the armed\nbands depend upon these, the most degraded and lowest caste of the\nBarbarians. In this way, the most turbulent and ignorant have been\ndrawn off, trained to use of arms, and used to spread and maintain\nthe terror and power of the English. Many of the low-castes have been\nshipped away in great ships to distant parts to form new settlements,\nand to add to those already begun. By these means, and from the\nincrease of riches from trade, and from plunder of remote regions\ngiving employment to the low orders, great disorders have been avoided.\nThe plunder of the vast treasures of the Princes of the Hindoos, and\nthe trade which has been forced upon them, and upon others, have\ncontributed to this end. The result of increased wealth has been,\nhowever, mostly to the gain of the High-Castes; who, holding the Lands,\nhave found in the enormous increase of value in these an additional\nstrength. The numbers of the rich have increased; and these always look\nto the Castes above, and draw away as far as possible from those below.\nThe poor remained uneducated, and fell more completely under control.\nIf one of their order benefited himself, he had no ambition higher\nthan a desire to stand well with those above him. Thus Wealth, always\njoining itself to the Higher Castes, made the power of the Aristocracy\n[Fo-hi] quite complete, and the obedience of the common people assured.\nOf this High-Caste the Sovereign is merely the ornamental top.\n\nThe learning of the Romans made but little advance, until very lately.\nThe great Schools had some of the High-Caste within their walls; the\nmass of the people remained ignorant, fierce, and brutal. The laws\ncontinued to be in a most dreadful state; the prisons, foul dens of\ndisease, cruelty and crime; the administration of Law, and disposal of\noffenders, savage and barbarous in the extreme.\n\nThe learning took mostly a fantastic [pa-ntsi] form--pedantic, busied\nwith the mere shells of words, and names of things. It busied itself\nchiefly with the old languages of the Romans and the Greeks. A man who\ncould repeat aloud from memory the _modes_ of a Greek word was a man of\nprofound learning. Of our Central Kingdom, of the wisdom and knowledge\nof the great East, they knew nothing; but nursed an intolerable\nconceit in admiration of the trivialities of their own ignorance,\nand by disdaining to understand a civilization of which they knew\nnothing--branding it as idolatrous, dark, Pagan!\n\nStill, gradually, intercourse and larger acquaintance with the main\nparts, revived the love of Roman art; and the Roman civilization once\nmore revived. Roman architecture, sculpture, learning, laws appeared.\nThe style of public buildings, houses of the High-Castes, Bridges,\ntook on the Roman forms. The _Literati_ became more numerous; and,\nwith the increasing riches, larger numbers became instructed. A long,\nbloody and disastrous War, which ended only a few years ago, moderated\nthe intolerant selfishness of the Barbarians. It left them so crushed\ndown under the weight of innumerable taxes, that it began to be seen\nthat these interminable Wars beyond Seas, were not paid for by the\ngains of trade, nor by acquisitions of territory. This moderation was\nstrengthened by the better and increasing knowledge: and Wars are not,\nin general, so eagerly waged.\n\nThe oldest child of a Ruler succeeds--male first, and failing him, a\nfemale. The direct descent from the _eldest_ always succeeds, to the\nexclusion of the younger.\n\nIt is justly claimed that this is an element of stability; though it\ncontains a foolish omission. For there is no recognized authority which\ncan set aside an heir in the direct Line for however good cause. Thus\nthe danger of a violent succession is always imminent--and of this the\nEnglish history has many examples. In our Flowery Land, this danger is\naverted by the wise customs of the great _Calao_.\n\nIn my Report, I have explained at length the rules which govern in\ntransactions with foreign tribes; and shown the maxims needful for\nour Illustrious, in all negotiations and dealings with the Western\nBarbarians. As trade (particularly by the English) is the grand object,\nI have pointed out how to deal in this matter, in such way as to yield\nno more than is convenient, nor sooner than is expedient.\n\nThe _Committee_ who govern, preserving ancient forms, administer\nthrough them, in the name of the Sovereign. These forms assume _three\ngreat divisions_, one of them being two-fold: _spiritual_, referring\nto the great Superstition; and the other _temporal_; this is quite\nnominal, for the \"temporalities\" always touch matters _spiritual_ in\nsome way.\n\nThe _First_ is the Executive.\n\nThe _Second_ is the Parliament.\n\nThe _Third_ is the Judicial.\n\nThe Executive--that is that which executes--has two parts. Spiritual,\n(the ghostly, the unknown,) performing all things concerning the\nSovereign-Pope, the Temples, the worship, the Bonzes. Temporal,\nordering the military forces by land and by sea, seeing that the\nlaws are obeyed, and ruling the Hindoos and other distant peoples\nand settlements. Also arranging all matters with other Christ-god\nBarbarians, and with all foreign peoples.\n\nThe Law-making, called Parliament, or place of talking [Ba-ble]. This\nis the Grand Council already referred to, divided into the Upper and\nthe Lower House, together really forming one, where all Rules and Laws\nare made. Here rests the Supreme Authority; and this body is controlled\nby the _Committee_, as before explained.\n\nThe Upper House is composed of Lords, who sit there in right of\nbirth, except the _Spiritual_ Lords, who are the great Bonzes (called\nBishops) of the Superstition. Formerly, this Upper was, next after the\nSovereign, most powerful, and often over-ruled, and even dethroned\nhim. But the greater intelligence has reduced its influence, and made\ninnoxious its mischievousness. Even its aristocraticalness could\nnot blind the Lower House to an _Imbecility_ inherent in its very\nconstitution. Born Law-makers! The proportion of idiots, worn-out\nand selfish _rou\u00e9s_ (we have no similar word), narrow caste-bound\negotists, at last, wearied even its congeners, and they left to the\nLords [Tchou] the ancient Forms, but deprived them of all real power.\nThis might not have happened, but that from the very nature of things\nthe number of Peers (as a Lord is called, who has the hereditary\nlaw-making right) who are active and young is inconsiderable; and,\nfor the most part, these prefer out-door sports, pleasures of wealth\nand travel, to sitting among the elders to be _snubbed_ for youthful\ninexperience. The result is that all warmth, life, and interest, all\ngenerous disinterestedness, are unknown by these venerable egotists.\nThey are sufficiently amused with hereditary titles, with the respect\nshown to their rank, and with the _playing_ at Law-making. They are\ntoo conceited to see that they are \"puppets,\" and too small to despise\nthe _honours_ which conceal their insignificance. Are they not exalted\nabove and separated from the \"common-herd\"? [kou-tong].\n\nThey are completely engrossed with the trivialities of their rank\n(High-Caste). They wait upon the Sovereign like menials, tricked\nout in furs, feathers, and robes, and jewelled chains, stars and\ngarters, sparkling in gems, silk hose, and the very shoes resplendent\nwith precious stones! On great occasions they are allowed (and this\npermission must come from the Sovereign) to place upon the head a\ngolden and jewelled \"circlet,\" named _coronet_. With this head-gear\nglittering about their brows, they receive the respectful reverence of\nthe people, and feel a greater exaltation than the gods. \"Ah,\" as the\nBarbarians say, \"who would not be a Lord!\"\n\nA special Superstition attaches itself to this head-ornament. That worn\nby the Ruler is called a _Crown_. When he places it on in public, the\ntrumpets give a mighty sound, all the people bow in humble homage,\nand Nature is supposed to arrest the wheels of her majestic course\nto join in the rapturous shouts of delight! The act is rooted in the\nSuperstition, and one of its most cherished things.\n\nThe highest ambition of a subject is to be permitted to take _Rank_\nand wear this _bauble_. There is no mean service to the Ruler, no\nintrigue, no sacrifice which may not be done or suffered to get this\nprivilege--the right to shine in this coronet. And such an ambition is\nso honourable, that success condones every contemptible thing by which\nit is secured. Men are blinded by the glare, and overlook the mean\nbeing below: in his Coronet he is unimpeached and unimpeachable!\n\nNor is this ambition confined to the Lords temporal; the High-Caste\nBonzes will not be remiss in those _duties_ to the Sovereign and to his\nfamily, in those to \"Society\" and to the exalted Lords, upon whom they\nhave to attend on all occasions of baptising and marrying and feasting,\nto give the _blessings_ [fihu-lsi] of the gods of the Superstition--in\nnothing remiss which shall help them to secure the peculiar _head-gear_\ngiven to those of their order whom the Sovereign raises to the lordly\nrank called _Bishops_. It is called a _mitre_. Ages ago, in the obscure\ndays of the Superstition, poor and miserable, the chief Bonzes were\ndistinguished by a head-covering like two bits of board, united or\n_mitred_ together, typical of the two-fold nature of their office.\nThus arose the Mitre, now a resplendent and costly bauble, more lofty\nthan the coronets, and showing the superiority of spiritual (priestly)\ndignity!\n\nIn these coveted distinctions, the Sovereign finds the source of nearly\nall the power really enjoyed; and by an artful use and distribution\nof coronets and mitres, often covertly manages the machinery of\ngovernment to his own wishes. An unscrupulous and able man may make\nhimself respected! I forgot to say that another jewelled symbol of\npriestcraft is bestowed with the mitre, so comical that one might\nsuspect it originated in the love of coarse humour common to the\nBarbarians--but its true origin was in the same early and poor days\nof the Superstition, when the highest Bonze was only a \"Keeper of the\nSheep;\" that is, his duty was to keep the poor devotees together and\nsave them from the idolatrous _pagans_. The Christ was said to have\ncalled his despised followers \"Sheep without a shepherd,\" and to have\nrequested the chief of his followers \"to feed his sheep.\" Thus it came\nabout that these chief men took a staff, crooked at one end (similar to\nthat used by a veritable shepherd), as typical of their duty.\n\nWith the mitre is, therefore, handed a costly _Crosier_--crooked and\ncrossed staff--to enable the Lord Bishop to _pull in_ the wandering\nsheep, or to catch hold of any which may have slipt down into\ndeep holes, or other rough places! \"Fancy a Lord Bishop catching\nsheep!\"--said a jocose Barbarian to me once.\n\nThe crowning of a new Ruler is a grand _ceremony_, in which all the\nwearers of the little crowns (_coronets_ and _mitres_) attend; and\nno Ruler is a RULER unless he be CROWNED, with all the superstitious\n_rites_. To this I may refer elsewhere. At present, I may mention that\nthe history of all the Barbarians, and notably that of the English, is\na story very often of the wars, assassinations, plots, and cruel deeds\ndone to seize the _Crown_: for whoever could contrive to clap this\nthing upon his head was at once King! In the eyes of the superstitious\ninvested with a sort of divinity! This feeling is well expressed by\ntheir greatest poet: \"What a divinity doth _hedge_ a King!\" This is,\ndoth encompass and protect a King.\n\nWhen the Law-making Houses meet, the custom is for the Sovereign to\nattend in all his State, and _open_ the Houses. That is, to swing\nopen the grand doors of the Upper House for the Lords, and especially\nfor the Lower members; who, on this occasion, are admitted to enter\nin and listen to the GRACIOUS SPEECH. The rush of the Low-members is\nfrightful, for the _Doors_ are only opened for a very short time.\nThe speech itself is nothing--merely some polite phrases as to the\nhealth and happiness of \"our beloved _Lords and gentlemen_\" (as the\nform is), and some Incantation to the gods of the Superstition, \"on\nthe prosperity and successful trade of our subjects.\" The great Lords\nsit like gods, effulgent, exalted; whilst the Low-members crowd like\nschool-boys, and as rudely as school-boys, below. This is another thing\nby which the childish Lords are amused with a notion of power.\n\nThe present Sovereign rarely opens the Houses, but delegates some great\nLords to do it for her. And the ceremony is far less. The Crown and the\nCrown Jewels are, therefore, so rarely seen, that the divinity of the\nRuler is in danger; for the Superstitious reverence and pope-worship\nattaches to the _Crown_. These Crown Baubles are, by the present\nRuler, kept imprisoned and guarded in a huge stone castle, so strong\nthat no force but of nature can throw it down, and are cautiously shown\nto the admiring and dazzled few who are allowed by the guards to see\nthem, at \"a penny a-peep\" (as an American Barbarian said in my ear,\non the day of my seeing them). In this he referred to the fee [tin]\nwhich is exacted before admission, and which (I was told) went to the\nprivy-purse of the Queen to buy pins. The Barbarians boast that these\nglittering _gewgaws_ cost more than all the Halls of Learning!\n\nThe _Judicial_ is the remaining great division of administration. In\nthis the Laws are explained and applied. No law is, by this department,\never made. It has no such function. None the less, it really makes new\nlaws, and unmakes the Statute Law (that is, the Law enacted by the\ngreat Council of Law-makers) just as it pleases. In fact the chief\nbusiness of this department is to _unmake_ the Laws, and the chief\nbusiness of the Council is to make _them over_ again. And between\nthe two, of the making of Law there is no end, nor any possible\nunderstanding. Were not the Barbarian body and mind very tough, they\nwould infallibly perish beneath the weight of this inscrutable and\nponderous contrivance. No one is benefited by it, but the innumerable\nofficers who manage it, and the Lawyers, who fatten upon the fees\n[tin-tin] which it wrings from all the unfortunates who have to attend\nupon it. These Lawyers form a special and very exclusive Caste; often\nat dispute among themselves upon points of personal concern, and as\nto the emoluments and offices which appertain to the Caste, but\nalways united (and so-called _Brothers_) as to everything outside,\nby which they can more effectually conceal and mystify the nature of\ntheir order, and the more adroitly plunder the uninitiated. This is\nthe Caste which opposes every inquiry into abuses and every attempt\nto reform the administration; which shouts the loudest praises to the\nSuperstition, puts in force all the terrors of the Caste and of the\nLaw (as by them expounded) to destroy any one who does not adore the\n_glorious_ event, and declare the Constitution and the Laws, the Crown\nand the Altar (meaning the Superstition), the most perfect of all\nhuman wisdom--indeed, _Divine_. I have explained the Glorious event.\nTo the Lawyer-Caste glorious in fees and means of plunder; in abuses\nwhich, had the reforms introduced before that event been perfected,\nwould have been swept away; reforms which that event postponed, and\nthe subsequent wars and civil dissensions made not only impossible,\nbut still more difficult in the future. In another place I propose to\nrefer to this department--the _Judicial_--when speaking of _the Courts\nof_ JUSTICE wherein the Laws are expounded and applied: because, as\nin these the daily course of the life of a people may be studied, I\nwish to look curiously into them. It will be readily seen, however,\nthat for a stranger to find, beneath the thick and manifold wrappings\nand ponderous obscurities of the Lawyer-Caste, where _Justice lies\nsmothered_, is no easy task.\n\nThe present Ruler is of the so-called _glorious_ dynasty, and is\nmore wise and virtuous than her ancestors, who were remarkable for\nobstinacy, meanness, stupidity, and debauchery. If one had a virtue,\nit was so misdirected by narrowness of mind as to be worse than vice.\nThe best man of them was the most mischievous Sovereign, and the wisest\nthing done by any of the dynasty was to keep away from England. When\nthey did nothing they did well; their activity was disastrous.\n\nThe Queen now reigning is esteemed by the Aristocracy because she\nleaves them to do as they please, and gratifies them by bestowing\nupon them and their devoted supporters _coronets_. She only demands\nfor herself and her numerous children _ample provisions_; if in these\nshe be gratified, she cares not to vex herself or her Lords by any\ndisputes. She is very benevolent, filling the great palaces with _poor\nrelations_, where they are supported--not by her. On the marriage of\none of her royal children her munificence is unequalled; but she asks\nher devoted Lords to tax her subjects to pay for it!\n\nHer allowances are, with wise _policy_, made very ample, that a\n_splendid Court_ may be kept up, to give places to the aristocracy,\nand to gratify the love of display. In this the Lords are generous; it\ncosts _them_ nothing, the taxes upon the people cover the expenses.\nThere are murmurs that the crown is never shown; that Royalty is\nhidden from view, and that the reverence of the people wanes; that the\nallowances designed and heretofore used to maintain a grand _Court of\nrespect and honour_ are misdirected, and get into the private pocket of\nRoyalty for merely personal objects. But he who should dare openly to\nsay this, unless of a very High Caste, would assuredly have his ears\n_cropped_ [ku-tof.]\n\nThe reign has not been without bloody wars; one of which was to\nuphold a sick _Turk_ (an outside Barbarian, who hates the very name of\n_Christians_, and calls them _dogs_), and whom the English Barbarians\nthemselves despise. Yet, they rushed with great ships and armed bands\nto attack another _Christ-god_ tribe, who threatened the sick Turkish\nchief; because, as they thought, their trade was best secured by\nhelping the Turk! This foolish war cost thousands of the lives of the\nEnglish sailors and armed bands, but what is far more consequential\nto the Barbarians, many millions [li-re] of gold. It ended in nothing\nat all; for the great tribe which lost in the war some ships and some\nforts, taken by the English, have now rebuilt them more strongly than\nbefore, and again threaten the sick Turk more than ever!\n\nWhen the American Barbarians had a domestic contention--some of them\nwishing to deliver a poor people held in slavery, by a custom in some\nof their provinces, from the cruel wrong--the English Barbarians sided\nwith those who wished to keep the slaves. They did this notwithstanding\nthat always before they had almost quarrelled with the American tribes\nfor allowing this very thing! Now, however, because they did not like\nto have that people great in ships, and because they thought it would\nbe safer for them and better for their trade, to have the American\ntribes broken to pieces, insidiously aided those who fought to hold the\nslaves, in every way they could without open war. But the slave-holding\ntribes were overpowered, and the slaves set free. Presently, the\nAmerican Barbarians demanded that they should be repaid some of the\n_monies_ which this treacherous conduct had cost them--the lives\ncould not be repaid. The English Barbarians, fearing the American\ntribes--very valiant, and having many ships--finally submitted to pay a\nheavy penalty for their wrong doing!\n\nLately, also, the English Barbarians have stood silent and seen another\ntribe on the Main Land (which aided them just before in the War for the\nTurk, and, in fact, saved them from being shamefully beaten) completely\noverthrown and mercilessly sacked by another tribe--when a kindly word\nwould have saved great suffering. But it does not displease the English\nBarbarians to see another tribe weakened--and their trade was not\ntouched in this war--in fact, perhaps they had more to gain by pleasing\nthe strong tribe which came out victorious.\n\nThe English themselves complain that, lately, they have not\ndistinguished themselves by their usual _glorious_ expeditions; that\ntheir war-ships and their fierce warriors are getting out of use, and\nthat the late _Committee_ of Government, made the name of England\ninglorious. This feeling at length got possession of the Lower House,\nand a new Committee appeared. These say that the attempt to carry on\naffairs with other tribes, upon the _moral_ rules of the _Christ-god_\nworship, although the tribes are devotees, is absurd. That the late\n_Committee_, who had some slight notion of correct moral precepts,\nand thought possibly one might venture to trust the Sovereign Lord of\nHeaven, were _peace-at-any-price_ men, milksops (a term of reproach\nequivalent to milkmaids) [kin-e-suk], and that, in their hands, the\nEnglish Lion had been _muzzled_--made an object of contempt! (This\nblood-thirsty beast is the admired symbol of English power.)\n\nThis new Committee are pledged to seize the very first occasion which\nmay offer to exhibit the _British_. Lion (as he is styled) with his\nmuzzle off, his claws sharpened, and his frame well fed and strong. The\ntaxes are raised and the most exact attention is devoted to all needful\nthings to perfect this beast to the standard of his ancient might. And\nthe present Government--_Committee_--watch with keen eyes for that\nopportunity, when they shall suddenly let spring this monster! It is\nsupposed that the angry _growl_ [heuien-ro] will sufficiently alarm;\nif not, the terrific roar [Zuung-luu] cannot fail! The only drawback\nto this ferocious pastime will be found in those members of the Lower\nHouse, who, themselves bearing a good weight of taxes without the\nemoluments of office, may oppose the majority and reduce the arrogancy\nof its temper. None the less, in the present brutal conceit of the\nLower House and of the lower orders, a war may at any moment break out,\nif for no other purpose than to show other Barbarians that the British\nLion is still a _Lion_ in full vigour! The idea of a dull, toothless,\nblind old brute, which even a jackass (as one of the Barbarian fables\nhas it) may kick with impunity, is too intolerable!\n\nThe morality of the present Loyal Court is said to be admirable--when\nyou can once find the Royal residence. But this is quite a _myth_.\nThere is, in this reign, no Loyal Court, only a domestic circle--a\nRoyal Family--not kept up with so much splendour as some of the\n_homes_ of the High-Caste. It is said that no suitor of an improper\nmoral colour may approach any Princess, unless he be a cousin of the\nQueen, when the blood sanctifies the taint, and all is clean. If a\nreal cousin be not of these suitors, one as nearly related among the\npoverty-stricken princes of the Barbarians from the Main Land as can\nbe had, is selected. He must profess to worship the great Superstition\nof the English _Sect_, and detest the Roman Pope--at least, in public.\nHis poverty is no objection--that is more than counterbalanced by the\nIllustrious obscurity of his race--that is, some family which ages ago\ncontrived to live by plunder, and by making itself safe within the\nwalls of stone castles, among steep rocks and hills. A family whose\ndescendants feel more pride in these, now, old and ruinous wrecks of\nformer insolence, than in any other possession--and whose alliance is\nacceptable to the English Queen! The poverty of these petty chiefs is,\nhowever, removed; nor do they marry a Princess of the English Queen\nunless they be paid for it. It is not the Queen who pays; the occasion\nis seized upon to obtain that _provision_ to which I have referred.\n\nAnd the paltry chief, and his new, royal bride, know poverty no more;\nthey, and their children, and children's children, are provided for by\nthe Lower House, who tax the people for this privilege, so much valued\nby them!--this privilege of succouring and enriching the worn out,\nuseless and decaying chiefs of foreign Barbarians, who have any, the\nremotest, trace of kinship to the Royal House of England!\n\nThe more considerable events, therefore, in the present reign, as\nthe Barbarians think, have reference to these marriages of Royal\nPrincesses, births, christenings (baptizings), deaths, and the like\namong them. The Low-House readily takes these opportunities to profess\nits homage and devotion. The Queen follows the _Sacred Writings_\nwith great exactness, which commands \"take care of those of your\nown blood\"--indeed, her devotion to this precept is, perhaps, more\nnoticeable than her devotion in general.\n\nHer Illustrious presence is rarely known among the people. When\nshe does appear, she is hardly more than respectfully and silently\nworshipped. She does not attract the _love_ of the people--though\nshe is (as a sly Barbarian youth of the Low-Castes once said to me,\nsarcastically), very _dear_ [chean]. (A _pun_ [phu-nsi] on the word;\nwhich may mean _beloved_, or _very costly_).\n\nWhen, as rarely happens, to honour some Show wherein the Royal\n_presence_ may bring money to a Charity, the Queen appears, surrounded\nby Royal guards, and in State, there is always to be seen a gigantic\nservant, dressed in the scarlet of the Royal household, seated\nimmediately behind the _Sacred Person_, to watch over and rescue\nher from any danger. His body and mighty strength are always ready\nto be interposed! This favourite servant, it is said, assists her\nIllustrious, when, among the hills of the Far North, she visits the\ngreat, high rocks, and climbs the sides of mountains--his strength is\nso ready, trusty, and invaluable!\n\nTo her, and to her subjects, a great loss was inflicted when Death\ndestroyed the youthful Consort of the Queen, when she was still young.\nHe was one of ancient family among the petty Barbarian chiefs to whom\nI have referred; was near in blood to the Queen, and by her greatly\nbeloved, it is said. He was never allowed any power in the State, and\nwas a subject of the Queen, though her husband. It is whispered that he\ndid not quietly submit to this condition of things--but it would not be\nworth the notice of a wise man to attend to this gossip. I could never\nlearn that he was of any use; but, none the less, the Barbarians exalt\nhim very highly, and have built lofty monuments to his honour. I said\nuse--I forgot--he gave a very numerous brood of princes and princesses\nto the English Barbarians. Of these they are very proud--not because\nthey do, or can ever do, anything useful, but because it adds to the\nnumber of the _High-Castes_, and around them very many poor members of\nthat caste can cluster, and live upon the cast-off clothes and other\nsecond-hand things of these exalted!\n\nOn the whole, we may desire the long continuance of Her Illustrious'\nreign. If her will were law, distant plunderings would cease; and\nher influence is better than may generally be looked for. She cannot\nprevent, but she may moderate those expeditions despatched to subjugate\nthe _Heathen_, extend trade, and bring under the dominion and worship\nof the Christ-god distant tribes. Great guns, fire-arms, gunpowder, and\na poisonous liquor called Rum, would, perhaps, under other sovereigns,\neven more frequently be sent to prepare the way for the Prince of Peace\n(as the Christ-god is often styled).\n\nSome respect for Justice and some regard to the rights of others have\nbeen shown under the influence of this Illustrious; but, as we have\nseen, this, the most honourable distinction of the present reign, is\nlikely to be obliterated. The old predatory instinct of the English\nBarbarians again comes uppermost, and though caution and fear of taxes\nmay make the Committee of Government tardy and unwilling to attack\n(unless some weak tribe, where victory would be sure and _its_ glory\nconspicuous), yet, such is the prevailing temper, that _blood-letting_\nseems needful to cool those fierce and haughty Barbarians.\n\nA ferocious war may be looked for; nor is it by any means incredible\nthat the war-ships of these Christ-god worshippers and their murdering\nbands should again be directed against our peaceful Central Kingdom!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nSOME PARTICULARS OF THE INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION.\n\n\nThe whole country is divided into districts, in general governed, like\nour Provinces, in the Sovereign's name, by viceroys and governors.\n\nThe heir to the Crown, if he be the son of the reigning Ruler, is\nPrince of Wales--a title bestowed upon his eldest son by an ancient\nking; and which, at the time, gave the administration of that Province\nto this son. The eldest son of the Queen now enjoys with this title\nalso that of Duke of Cornwall. These lofty designations confer no\npower, although they carry with them high distinction and great\nrevenues.\n\nThe Aristocracy in the case of the heir, as in that of the Sovereign,\nwatch jealously anything which looks like _intellect_. They do not\nstint personal respect and ample revenues, but take care that upon\ncoming to the Crown, the new Sovereign shall be a \"puppet.\"\n\nHe is, whilst heir, not allowed to take any kind of share in\ngovernment, but is surrounded by flatterers, flunkeys [pluc-ngi], idle\nyoung people of both sexes, and, from mere want of useful business,\nfalls into every sort of sport and pleasure. He must, indeed, be strong\nin morality and in character, if, upon coming to his high office, he\nbe not reduced to the selfish _imbecile_ and puppet, desired by the\nHigh-Caste. Lucky if he have not become absolutely contemptible by his\nvices!\n\nIreland is governed by a High Viceroy, whose chief employment is to\namuse the Irish with shows--the real power being in the hands of the\nGeneral of the armed bands. Anciently, the Provinces were administered\nby Vice-roys, who possessed authority; but the pettiness of the Island\nand swiftness of communication have now concentrated all actual\nadministration at the Capital city. The Provincial governors, however,\nkeep up some show of the ancient order, and, nominally, command the\nProvincial _Militia_. This is a merely nominal force, composed of\nbutcher-boys, farmer-lads and the like, who do not know how to handle a\n_fire-arm_, nor how to fight, unless in the Barbarian pastime of _the\nRing_: a combat wherein the young Barbarians, two being pitted against\neach other, try each to hit the other a terrible blow directly in the\neye. This, done with the hand doubled up, nearly destroys that organ.\nHe is victor who succeeds in hitting both eyes of his antagonist, and\nfairly blinding him! This, a common and admired sport, is greatly\nesteemed by the English Barbarians, and considered an admirable\ntraining. It develops the ferocity and brutality required to make good\nsoldiers (plunderers), and the powers of endurance indispensable in\nthe distant forays. Even in the Halls of Learning, it is thought to be\na manly _science_, fitting the young Aristocracy to match any man in\npersonal conflict, and enabling him to be self-possessed and ready to\nfight his way through the world. As, in general, the lowest orders are\nbadly fed and reduced in strength, and, though well used to brutal\nfights, yet are not trained to the _Science_, the young Aristocrat\nis expected \"to pummel the brute\" upon the slightest occasion of\ndisrespect.\n\nThe provincial Magistracy are mainly employed in keeping the\nLower-Castes in order, and especially in punishing trespasses upon\nthe lands, or upon the convenience of the Higher-Castes. The most\ncommon form of trespass is that called _Poaching_. The High-Castes\nown all the lands, and the Low-Castes, who till the soil, are the\nancient slaves--slaves no longer under any law, but nearly as much\nso by custom. Very poor, but little better than beggars, and really\nbeggars in large numbers, and hungry, the temptation to knock over the\nabundant nearly tame creatures (birds, fowls, hares, and the like)\neverywhere around them in the fields and copses, is too strong to be\nresisted. To do this is to be a _Poacher_--a criminal most detested by\nthe High-Caste; for he presumes to think, in some cases, that the right\nin these free creatures is _not_ absolutely vested in the High-Castes.\nYet this sort of property is most rigidly _preserved_, by the penalties\nof severe punishment, to the use of the High-Caste--for his sport in\nthe shooting of them, rather than for food. The Poacher, who is merely\ntempted by hunger, and who abjectly begs pity and promises reformation,\nescapes in some instances lightly; but he who presumes to question the\nright to this wholesale appropriation feels the full wrath of the Law.\n\nPetty civil and criminal offences may be tried by the Provincial\nMagistracy; subject, however, in cases involving any interests of\nimportance, to revision at the Capital.\n\nThere is a sort of Provincial (and yet Metropolitan) Court called\n_Convocation_ [Kal-ti-se]. In this, things touching the Christ-god\nSuperstition are determined. If a Bonze has not worn, or has worn\nimproperly, his neck-tie, or his _surplice_ [ro-bsi]; if the table\nbefore the Altar (Idol) has been placed out of square; for things of\nthis sort--or if a Bonze be accused of departing from the ordered\nrendering of some word in the _Sacred Writings_, or of having said\nsomething contrary to the orders of Convocation or of the _rites_--for\nthese and other things respecting the great Idolatry, _Convocation_\nsits. It is composed of High Bonzes and a few delegates of High-Caste\ndevotees, whose duty is merely to ratify the decisions of the High\nBonzes--these regulate everything.\n\nThis High and Lofty Court was anciently styled _Star Chamber_, because\nexalted above mere mortal interests, and only concerned with the\npreservation of the Idolatry. Formerly it worshipped the Sovereign as\nPope of the Superstition more devotedly than is the fashion at present,\nand burnt people to death for refusing to do so. Now it refrains from\nthis severity, and is content (or tries to be) with depriving a Bonze\nwho doubts, of his _living_, and all honours and emoluments.\n\nIt still convenes in the old hall of its former glory. A venerable\nmoss-covered pile, vast and gloomy, with lofty towers and turrets of\nrock, with hewn cells and deep dungeons. Here may be seen, fixed to\nthe rock, the rings and chains, worn and rusty with age, where the\nvictims of superstition suffered beneath the decrees of this ancient\nCourt. Slow and proud, along the dark stone corridors, and beneath\nthe dusky arches of this great prison-palace, the High Bonzes and the\ndevotees walk in state. Ushered with pompous ceremonial, and with the\ngrand incantations to the gods and devils of the Superstition, into the\nlofty and obscure hall of the Star-Chamber, the _Convocation_ sits. In\ndeep alcoves around are stored the ponderous volumes, containing all\nthe mysteries and terrors of the Superstition. In these are the horrid\nimaginings of fanatical Priests and devotees; the _dogmas_ and _canons_\nof the Superstition; the dreadful arsenal, whence were drawn those\nfrightful weapons of superstitious terror, whence issued the chains and\nbolts, and scourges, the faggots and the flames. One hears the groans\nof the tortured, the steps of the jailers, the clashing of the chains,\nwhen, in these long and resounding aisles and arches, the winds moan,\nthe distant footsteps fall, or the old casements in the ruinous towers\nshake and rattle.\n\nNor is the arsenal wholly useless now; the weapons are not all rusty;\n_anathemas_ may yet be found to terrify, and restraints to punish.\n_Heresy_ [pho-phi], as any doubt concerning the Queen-pope and the\n_Superstition_ is called, drives the culprit from Society, deprives the\nBonze of all preferment, of his employment, and turns him ignominiously\n_adrift_, to live or to starve.\n\n_Convocation_ watches over the _Sacred Writings_, to see that no\nchange, not so much as of a syllable, be made; not trusting to _Jah_,\nwho may have himself, perhaps, grown indifferent to the matter. A\ncurious thing, showing how irrationally men will act in respect of an\nirrational system. For the notion is that this Word of Jah (the _Sacred\nWritings_), being his _Revelation_ (Word), have always been by Him\nexactly preserved through all the ages and the changes of languages,\nand of transcription, and of _everything to this hour_. Why is it to be\nsupposed, then, that He will suddenly lose his power to preserve, or\nwill be indifferent to preserve?\n\nPunishments in the ordinary Courts are not very remarkable, only there\nis one so characteristic of the English, so comically barbarous, that I\nwill try to describe it.\n\nThe offender is stripped naked to the waist, tied up with his hands\nwidely extended, and with his face to a strong post; then a man takes a\nlarge strong cat, kept hungry and savage for the purpose, and placing\nthe creature at the back of the neck, draws it forcibly down the naked\nback. Of course the cat holds on with teeth and claws. This is repeated\ntill the culprit faints, when the cat is removed. The back of the man\nis washed with vinegar and salt, and he revives, perhaps to undergo\nthe infliction again. This astonishing mode of correcting offenders is\ncalled _flogging with the cat_.\n\nI may also make a remark upon another feature of criminal punishment.\nThe crime of _treason_, not only insures the death, but the horrid\nmutilation of the culprit; and, not satisfied with this, reaches to\nthe innocent wife and children. All the estates, titles, honours,\nproperties of the offender are sequestrated to the State, and his blood\nis _attainted_; that is, made incapable of giving honour and employment\nto his offspring! Thus the innocent are disgraced, and reduced, not\nmerely to beggary, but, as far as possible, placed in a condition of\nhopeless misery!\n\nThe Idolatry and Sacred Writings are, no doubt, responsible for this\nimpolitic injustice and cruelty. For _Jah_ is constantly made by the\nPriests to say, that he visits the sins of the father upon his child\neven to the tenth generation! A natural development of the moral sense\nwould fall short of this vindictiveness; and in this false and horrible\nwrath, taught in their _Sacred Writings_, the fierce Barbarians are\nencouraged to outdo themselves!\n\nThe greatest of all the Courts, and which chiefly controls the others,\nis the High and Mighty COURT OF CHANCERY. It has many names--as\nCourt of Equity, of the King's Conscience, and others--assuming as\nmany styles and jurisdictions as the ancient _Proteus_ of Egypt;\nwho, as the Priests said, could take any form, or no form, be fire,\nor cloud, or invisible air. So this Court, feared by the Barbarians\nwith a paralyzing dread, takes on any shape! It stands for the King's\nconscience--which, as the conscience of a Pope-king, must be a doubly\ndivine thing. For, as remarked elsewhere, \"_Divinity doth hedge a\nKing!_\" We, I think, should fear that this conscience would be as\nuncertain as the man. Its function is, therefore, to decide with\n_Equity_; to relieve against the inexorable hardness of the ancient\nrules; and give relief in cases of _mistake_, _accident_, and _fraud_.\nThis looks admirable, but it is all _sham_ (phu-dgi).\n\nNot the least attention is really paid to equity, but only to the\n_decrees of the Court as recorded_. A Suitor petitions for redress.\nThe petition is not examined to be determined upon the matters therein\nstated. First--The _Petition_ must be in all respects in due form,\naccording to the recorded rules. Second--The matter of it must be\nsuch as the Court will consider, and such as may come before the\nCourt. Third--Are the Parties in the Jurisdiction, and are all the\nparties who may be interested, duly notified and present; or, if not\npresent, accounted for. Fourth--Are the matters for the Court only,\nor must it be assisted by some petty judges to ascertain the facts.\nFifth--The petition being at last before the Judge, he may not look\ninto it, unless the Lawyers look into it with him; and, then, no\nopinion (decree) can be given until the Records are fully examined,\nto discover if anything of the sort _has been_ relieved. If a similar\ncase be found, then the petitioner is called upon to prove his case as\nstated in his petition; and, if he fail to prove his exact case (though\nhe may make a stronger show for relief), he is ordered out of Court,\nand condemned to heavy costs (tin-tin). If the case be proved, then\nthe Judge _reserves his judgment_. For he must very carefully compare\nall the cases, examine all the voluminous Records, besides examining\nthe innumerable Papers which have grown up around the Petition during\nall the proceedings (often spreading over many years), before he dare\nto order the recording of his _decree_. For, this done, he has added\nanother Case to the King's conscience; that is, to the highest form of\nLaw and of human Justice!\n\nHe dare not do this unless justified by the Records; interminable,\nstretching backwards to the first King who pretended to have a\nconscience; obscure, contradictory--he dare not unless justified by the\nRecords--_Precedents_. If he mistake, grossly, he will be certain to be\ncalled to account by the Lawyer-Caste, who make a business of seeking\nfor discrepancies; in fact, he is bewildered--not by the case; that\nis simple, or _was_ originally, simple enough; but, by the arguments\nof the Lawyers, the documents overlying and enveloping the case, _and\nby the difficulty of deciding according to the Precedents_. Could he\nmerely announce his _own_ judgment, there is no difficulty--but that is\nthe last thing to be thought of--in truth, if reduced to _that_, he is\nbound to refuse any relief, however clear it is that _equity_ requires\nit!\n\nThus the Judge, old and wearied; a man tottering over his grave,\nfeeble, irresolute, takes the course which maybe looked for--and\npostpones, and postpones; other like cases accumulate on his hands; he\ndismisses some, \"reserves\" others, _refers_ to another judge what he\ncan decently, decides none! Or only those which are petty, or those\nwhich are really unopposed, or those exciting no interest.\n\nMeantime, the parties to the _Petition_ are dead, or absconded, or\nbeggared. Years have elapsed; all parties are worn out or impoverished\nby the enormous expenses--at length, there is no one to pay Lawyers\nand the Court Officers--the thing _lapses_--dies. Term after Term\n(as Sessions of the Court are called), the Case is called. Some poor\nwretch struggles still to save something of the property _tied up_ in\nthe Court by the Case--he tries to call up from the mass of dusty and\nforgotten Records, a reminiscence of the lost Petition. In vain--the\nthing is a wreck, and has wrecked its builders!\n\nThe Case lies forgotten amid the interminable processes, affidavits,\nanswers, pleas, replications, rejoinders, motions, applications,\nnotices, subpoenas, summonses, commissions, bills of amendments, and of\nsupplement; documents of all sorts, making up the _Case_, mouldering\naway in the stone alcoves of the huge Records; as the poor victims\nof it lie mouldering in similar forgetfulness! Not, however, without\nprofit to the Lawyer-Caste; for some miscreant of this profession,\nperchance, discovering the Case, in his searches after means of spoil,\nsees how _he_ may gain by it. He knows of an estate remotely touched by\nthe matter of the old and forgotten Petition, and he knows quite well\nthat there is really nothing affecting the property; yet, he sees fees\nand spoil. It is merely to frighten the possessor of the estate by an\nintimation of a _defect of title_, and refer to this old Case, never\ndecided. The _bandit_ [khe-te] sets in motion the machinery of the High\nCourt of Chancery. One of its officers summonses the poor man to come\ninto that Court, and answer to the allegations touching his right to\npossess the house in which, perhaps, he has lived for twenty years! and\nlived without objection from any source!\n\nNow it does not matter at all that there is no sort of ground for\nthis attack; the moment it is made, the title of the poor unoffending\nman to his own house is ruined--almost as completely as if by the\nsentence of the Court he had been deprived of it. The robber who\nattacks wishes merely to force the owner of the house to buy him off.\nTo secure this spoil _he records his summons in the Court_, and from\nthat moment no one will buy the house, nor will any one lend any money\nupon the security of it until that record be removed. If the victim of\nthis oppression be in debt, or have but little money, or but little\nmore than his house, or if he have borrowed money upon his house--in\nfact, unless he be a man quite rich, he is inevitably ruined! He is\nruined, because the lawyer has, _by the Record_, practically deprived\nhim of his estate. And this is done by a Petition to the Court, making\nallegations artfully and untrue. Yet, as they are not supported by\nany sort of evidence, and are merely bare _insinuations_ often of\nanybody--it does not the least matter--is it not inconceivable that\nsuch a thing should be allowed? That merely upon the _Record_ of\na Petition, without any evidence, without any character, without\nany surety for its truth, without any, the least, inquiry, or any,\nthe smallest deposit in Court to cover the expenses to which the\nsummoned party may be put, should it appear he has been wrongfully\nsummoned--this great injustice may be perpetrated, and perpetrated\nwithout risk of any punishment! \"But surely the Court will immediately\ndismiss this iniquitous case?\" Not at all; the Court cannot be reached;\nall the endless proceedings and delays already mentioned intervene. The\nfees and expenses are enormous--the decision far off. The victim cannot\nget a hearing. He borrows money and employs lawyers--in vain. He can do\nno more--he is bankrupt. The lawyer who has ruined him gets nothing\nin such a case, because the victim prefers poverty to gratifying the\nrobber. He gets nothing, because he has no real case, and drops it as\nsoon as he sees he can make nothing out of it. Should the party be\nvery rich upon whom the robbery is attempted, he may fight it out and\nfinally clear his property, and get a _decree_ for some costs (only\na portion) against the other party. But this _decree_ is worthless;\nthe party has no property and cannot pay. _He_ has fought _for luck_,\nhaving nothing to lose, but all to gain.\n\nUsually, however, as the Lawyer well knows, the party attacked will\nhurry to buy off the suit!\n\nIn this way, old Causes are Mines, which the Lawyer-Caste work to their\nown peculiar advantage. They have every facility, both from their\nexperience and from the usages of the Caste. The very Judges of the\nCourts are of the same Caste, and give every assistance in matters of\nforms, continuances, motions, dilatory proceedings, and the countless\nprocesses by which Lawyers make fees and their clients are robbed.\n\nThus the Court of Equity, with a mocking irony, becomes a Court of\nIniquity! and the very tribunal designed to do more perfect Justice\nis perverted to the most scandalous use--made an engine the most\noppressive and destructive ever contrived for the misery of Society,\nshort of one invented to destroy it wholly!\n\nThe Court was originally organised by Priests who had acquired the\nRoman learning, or some tincture of it, and endeavoured to strengthen\ntheir own Class, and to soften the barbarous harshness of the common\nLaw, by erecting this Court. The laws of the Barbarians were savage,\nin civil as well as in criminal things; and the Priests, more cultured,\nendeavoured to soften and temper this harshness, or, at any rate, to\nget more complete control by it. They formed it, and administered\nit at first, and for a long time. But the Lawyer-Caste have now its\nadministration, and they have not so much respect for the opinions\nof the general public as had the Priests, and have made the Court a\n_bye-word and a shame_ [Kri-mi]!\n\nThe expenses and fees are beyond belief. A Lawyer who gets one good\nChancery Case into his hands, lives upon it luxuriously. I was once\nshown a _Bill of Costs_, as these items of fees are styled.\n\nI observed that one would be charged for a thing done and for the same\nthing not done--in other words, for the doing and for the not-doing.\nThus, if one requests a thing be done, the Lawyer will charge for\n\"receiving instructions,\" \"for reducing the same to writing,\" \"for\ninstructing a clerk,\" and the like--then, having sent away the clerk on\n_another_ matter, he will charge for taking new instructions and going\nover the same ground again. Thus, actually charging for the delay and\nobstruction caused in the affair.\n\nAgain, if you ask a Lawyer something, he will presently say, \"I must\ntake counsel,\" meaning he wishes to ask another Lawyer. When the _Bill_\nis examined you will find, say, \"for being asked and not knowing, 6s.\n8d.; for taking your instructions to counsel, 6s. 8d.; for attending\nupon counsel, \u00a31 1s.; for fair copy made for him, \u00a32 2s.;\" and so\non. Your simply unanswered _question_ has thus served the following\npurposes:--If it had been answered at once the fee would have been,\nsay, 6s. 8d.; but as it was not, but carried elsewhere, it has given\nthe first Lawyer five times more of fees, and his _brother_ in the\nCaste also a handsome sum! One may judge how ignorant the first Lawyer\nwill be likely to be, and how often he finds it convenient to help his\nhigher Caste brother, especially when in helping him he so greatly\nhelps himself! We have some cunning rogues in our Central Kingdom, but\nsuch astuteness as this is beyond them!\n\nI once visited this tribunal of Chancery to witness the\nproceedings--but they are so dull and prolix as to drive one away as\nsoon as possible. The presiding Judge, and all the High-Caste Lawyers,\nwear wigs and gowns. The lower Lawyers, who are called Solicitors, sit\nin a sort of well, below and at the feet of the High, and have no badge\nof distinction. In fact, they are not respected, and only tolerated by\nthe _bigwigs_ (as the High Lawyers are often called) as the jackals\nwho provide them with prey. They immediately act in matters with\nthe victims of the Court, and do all the dirty work, extracting the\nfees, and the like--the High Lawyers taking the most of the plunder,\nalthough, for decency sake, they will not see the victims of their\nrapacity if they can help it.\n\nThe _wigs_ spoken of are very absurd, and make the wearers seem to be\nengaged in masquerading, or fooling. (We have no term corresponding to\nthe former.) The lappets of thick hair come down over the ears of the\nJudge, to enable him (as it occurred to me) to take his _nap_ [qu-iz]\nwith less danger of being disturbed.\n\nNo one can be a Judge, nor a High-Caste Lawyer, who does not wear\nthe wig. It has a funny appendage behind, like a pig's tail, exactly\nfitting to fall upon the small of the neck; and is itself a curiously\ncurled \"frizzle\" of horsehair, selected for uniformity of whitish\ncolour. There is something _cabalistic_ in this thing, which is\ncarefully hidden from the outside world.\n\nIf a Judge take it off, all business immediately stops. A Lawyer\ninstantly loses his power of speech if his wig fall off. It was\ntold me in confidence, that the tail (like that of swine) had a\npeculiar significance, to say; the utter selfishness of the Caste and\n_greed_--another whispered a darker thing, referred to the Devil of\nthe Superstition: that, anciently, this Caste struck a bargain with\nthe Demon, and he made it obligatory upon the Lawyers always to wear\nthis chief sign of _diabolism_! This may be merely the chaff [pti-ni]\nof these Barbarians. At any rate, something _occult_ is attached to\nthe thing; and a curious respect is shown to it, mixed of fear and\ncontempt, even by outsiders.\n\nThe Judge sits so highly exalted, as to be out of the way of hearing\nthe passages occurring among the Lawyers. He is generally half-blind,\nhalf-deaf; quite worn out with age, and the ceaseless wretchedness of\nhis Court and the Lawyers, and incapable of vigorously dealing with\nanything. In this Court the most imbecile is most fit; for nothing is\nexpected but imbecility (so far as the public is concerned), and fees\nfor Officers and Lawyers.\n\nWhen a Case is _on_, the Lawyers begin to talk, and to read from the\nbig books, on one side, and then on the other. Neither tries to get at\nthe truth, but each in turn does his best to mislead the Judge. Both\nread from the interminable and conflicting Records, and both find ample\nrecords which fit the precise Case, which each contends for. The poor\nold Judge, now and again, takes a note of these quotations from the Big\nBooks of records--for he is to decide not upon the equity but upon the\nrecords, as we have seen. By the time he has found his _spectacles_\n[Qu-iei] he has forgotten the Book, the number, the Recorder's name,\nand the many other things, needful to find where the record is, and\nwhen he is again told, lifting up his wig-pallet, he only hears\nimperfectly, and _mistakes_. So, when, perhaps a long time after, he\ntries to make up a decree to fit the Case, the _record_ to which he\nturns refers to nothing in the world like what was intended!\n\nHour after hour, and sometimes day after day, these speeches of the\nLawyers go on. For the longer the talk the larger the _fees_--nobody\nthinks of Justice! The old Judge understands the trick of the _farce_\ngoing on, perfectly well; in his younger days he was famous for his\nskill in all the arts of the High-Caste Lawyers, and obtained his\npresent position on that account, and because others wanted to get\na formidable rival out of the way; he understands how very little\n(but fees) is involved in the endless talk and reading, and begins to\nnod--even, the gods would nod. The Lawyer observes, stops a bit; the\nunexpected silence awakens the wearied old man--he opens his watery,\nblinking eyes, fumbles his papers, or takes a pinch of snuff, and says:\n\"Go on, brother Bounce, I'm with you\"--meaning he is attending to him;\nand soon falls asleep again.\n\nPerhaps one of the talking Lawyers is of the High Q.C. I am told that\nsuch is the dread of this Lawyer-Caste, that the Sovereign constantly\nflatters the tribe, and gives to them the _fattest_ [phig-sti]\noffices. All Judges and the Keeper of the Sovereign's Conscience--this\nCourt--and a great many other most important places, and exaltation\nto the Highest Caste of Lords [Tchou], falls to them by established\nrule--in truth, the Caste is chief in the Law-making Houses, and,\nconsequently, in Government itself. The Q.C. is, however, a thing done\nto many who cannot, as yet, get fees from the public treasure, that\nthey may get them from out-siders more amply. The right to attach these\nsymbols to the name of Lawyer also gives him a _silk gown_ (during\nthe present reign) worked by the sacred hands of Royalty itself! The\nhonoured wearer of this is a Q.C.--that is, Queen's Champion--and binds\nall its wearers to defend the Sacred Head (Pope) of the Superstition\nfrom the machinations of the Evil One, and those of their own order\nwho, sold to the Devil, may possibly be put up by him to plot mischief,\nnot only against the general outside world, but against \"Crown and\nAltar!\"\n\nPerhaps, after days of this weary work, one of the Lawyers suddenly\ndiscovers that somebody, or something required in the intricate and\ndubious _processes_, is wanting; or in some document some erasure is\ndetected; or something _to hang a point_ upon is seized hold of--and at\nonce a wrangle between the Lawyers ensues. The Judge fairly awakes;\nthe whole _case breaks down_ [kei-tz-se]; and everybody, but the poor\nvictims in the case, anticipate more fees. The victims, however, who\nhave already beggared themselves in it, suddenly despair; perhaps the\ncase never again comes on, and the property involved in it wastes away\nin dark obscurity beneath the gnawing rats, which infest the Court.\n\nSometimes (as I was told) some poor man, or woman, who had scraped\ntogether the last farthings to pay the Lawyers (for they will in no\nwise act unless paid beforehand, feeling that such service as they\nrender is not likely to be gratefully recompensed, and it being the\nseverest rule of the order never to show any pity for outsiders), being\nin Court when they see all hope destroyed, and themselves and their\nchildren beggared, have fallen down and been carried out of Court with\nreason for ever gone; or with such a deadly blow that never more do\nthey revive, but soon die, and are buried at the public charge!\n\nYou will see wretched creatures trying to look decent in well-brushed\nrags, darned and patched, with shoes through which the toes protrude,\nbut over which the blacking [di-yte] is carefully smeared--you will see\nthese victims of the Court, like ghosts, flitting about the passages,\nand watching for the entry of the Judge. One will attempt to address\nhim--but he is conveniently deaf. He knows the _victim_ is there, and\nthough a party may speak, has the right to speak for himself, and the\nJudge is bound to hear, yet, such a thing is unknown. The mysteries of\nthe Court deny to any _sane_ man the attempt. These poor creatures are\ninsane--or, what answers just as well, have been branded by the Lawyers\nas _Insane_. So the miserable wretch, trembling, raises his voice, \"_My\nLud_\" (meaning my Lord), \"My Lud;\" here the Court-officer cries out\n_Silence_; or, if the man be, _for the first time_, attempting to call\nattention to his case, by the time he has got so far as to fairly say\n\"My Lud!\" what with the jeering looks of the Lawyers, his own ignorance\nof the mysteries, and his wretchedness, he either completely breaks\ndown--or if the Judge, seeing a _new_ face, asks him to \"go on\"--almost\nat once perceives that the man is only a \"poor ruined suitor,\" and is\nentirely out of order, and _cannot_ be heard! He says: \"You must sit\ndown. Case _Hoggs_ v. _Piggs is in order_. Mr. Clerk call _Hoggs and\nPiggs_.\" Thus \"My Lud\" will be as far as any \"poor ruined suitor will\never get!\"\n\nBesides the numerous, worse than useless, idlers (Lawyers) who fatten\nupon the industry of others, and the loss inflicted by their voracity\nand by the other expenses, this Court devastates upon a scale beyond\nbelief. I was told by an English Barbarian that he once tried to obtain\none thousand of money from the Court, which the lawyers said there\nwould be no difficulty in getting, as it was clearly _his_; it would be\nonly a matter of form, possibly _some_ delay. \"Well,\" said he to me, \"I\ninstructed my lawyer to go to the Court and get the money. He demanded\nfifty pounds to cover fees [tin]. To make a short story, he went to the\nCourt, _but I never got any money_! After I had actually paid in fees\nmore than half of the one thousand, the obstacles had grown to be so\ninsurmountable that I merely dropped the matter.\" \"But,\" I said, \"the\nthousand--who has that?\" \"Oh, it is in the Court of Chancery!\"\n\nAnother honest Barbarian told me that he had spent all his life (he\nwas sixty) studying and endeavouring to awaken attention to the abuses\nof this Court--but in vain. The attempt seemed hopeless. The Court\nwas entrenched in the very frame of the body politic, and nothing but\n_reconstruction_ would answer; and that reconstruction is probably only\npossible after first _demolishing_!\n\nThis man said that a prodigious sum--sixty millions of English\nmoney--was _directly_ locked up; and that of property of all sorts,\nsubject to the _clutch_ or injured by the processes of the Court it\nwas incalculable, and, very likely, would represent a tenth of all the\nvaluables in the whole Kingdom!\n\nIn my walks and in my travels, sometimes in the city, I would notice\nmany houses, with windows smashed out, the walls tottering, the\ndoors hanging loosely, or wholly gone, the approaches filthy, the\nwhole place a _nuisance_, injuring and depopulating all about it, or\nfilling the ever-spreading mischief with the vilest population. I\nhave asked an explanation--\"Oh, it is in Chancery.\" In the midst of a\nvillage, suddenly one comes upon a vacant space; it is an abomination;\neverything near catches the infection, all that portion of an otherwise\npretty place becomes a _nuisance_. The character of the village at\nlength suffers; it becomes known as a place ruined by the Court of\nChancery. In fine, whenever one sees a wrecked building, or any\nproperty marked by neglect and verging to total destruction, the\nexplanation is: \"It is in Chancery.\" And the same thing is often said\nof ruined men and women: \"Oh, they have lost everything in the Court of\nChancery!\"\n\nTo such an extent is the destruction of the Court carried, that the\nLaw-making Houses are forced to interfere, or perhaps the Officers\nof Health. These may abate a _nuisance_, and sometimes mere filth\nand indecencies are removed. But nobody will improve a property to\nwhich he cannot have a certain and quiet possession. Therefore, when\nthe evil becomes intolerable, the Law-making Houses make a Law by\nwhich a property of this sort is sold, under their _guarantee_ that\nthe buyer shall have perfect possession. This is a thing next to an\nimpossibility; and nothing less than a great public evil too great to\nbe endured, will ever induce the Lawyers who control the Houses to\ninterfere with the legitimate work of the Court.\n\nIt is wonderful that the English Barbarians submit to this Court; but\none must consider that, after all, it is not so inconsistent with\nBarbarian habits as it at first sight looks. Plunder is natural to all\nthe tribes, and especially to the English. As nearly all plunder, the\nthing is normal. Lawyers must live; and the common English Barbarian\nmakes a business to _keep out_ of their hands. The Higher Castes\nenjoy so large a share of the gains, and are, in fact, so largely\ninterested in preserving the Court, that _they_ do not care to move.\nThen, to other causes, must be added the stolid conceit of the English\nBarbarians, who really think everything English so much better than\nwhat can be found elsewhere, that, in respect of this very Court,\nadmitting some abuses, yet, after all, \"Where else can you find such\nJudges--men who cannot be bribed?\"\n\nOn the whole, therefore, with that conceited stolidity of character,\nmore remarkable in the English than in any other Barbarians, they come\nto regard even the worst of _their institutions_ as better than the\nbest of the rest of the world!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nUPON EDUCATION: A FEW REFLECTIONS.\n\n\nIn our Illustrious and Central Kingdom, from times long before the\nBarbarians beyond the great Seas existed, or, at any rate, had any name\nor place in the earliest records, it has been the established rule that\nLearning (Li-te-su) should be the fountain of honour--that there is no\nnobility of birth. Under the Illustrious, the Son of Heaven, all were\nequal subjects--children--and that which made one more distinguished\nthan another was _Wisdom_. This Wisdom, a knowledge of men and things;\nof the proper maxims [ri-te-es] of morality and government, and their\nproper application to human affairs. The _Central idea was to know\noneself_, and thus to know others--to add to this, technical knowledge,\nand the knowledge of our Illustrious annals and customs.\n\nThe mandarins, great officers of our Illustrious, have no rights of\nbirth. According to their class in the Schools of Examination, they\nare selected to advise, to administer, to govern in the Provinces,\nand order the forces for the keeping of due order. They rank in the\ndegree of the excellency of their registration in the great Schools of\nExamination.\n\nBut it is very different with the Western Barbarians, where _birth_\ngives a right to exalted place in Government! Power, among the\nEnglish, is wholly in the hands of this hereditary class--called\n_Nobility_--elsewhere called Aristocracy [Fo-hi]. Thus, learning has\nbeen unimportant, unless as a sort of accomplishment; and been mostly\nconfined to Priests. With them, it was a means of increased influence,\nand added to the effect of the Superstitious pretensions. Force and\nfraud being the main agents of Government and sources of distinction,\nlearning was not merely disregarded, but held in contempt by the\nHigh-Caste. What learning there was (chiefly confined to the Priests),\nbusied itself with the Superstition, and with the ancient tongues;\nbecause with these Superstition had its _literary roots_.\n\nStill, some grew more inquisitive, especially outside the Priestly\norder, and learning made some progress. Gradually, there emerged from\nthe Halls of Learning, rules, which (countenanced by some Sovereigns),\nbegan to influence Society. For Sovereigns, and the High-Caste, had\nbegun, in some measure, to affect a liking for learning--confined,\nhowever, almost wholly to the narrow range referred to. These _rules_\nwere in fact DEGREES; which conferred upon the possessor a Literary\ndistinction.\n\nThe _Halls of Learning_, which had been in good measure established\nby Sovereigns, out of plunder, upon the orders of Priests (who\nwould obtain the money through the Ruler's dread of the devil, when\napprehending or near to death); these, alone, could confer the degrees.\nNo power accompanied them. They, merely, became requisite to any one\nwho wished to enter upon, what is called, the _Learned professions_.\nThese are of the _Superstition_, of the _Law_, and of _Medicine_. Soon,\nin these employments, the degrees became quite _Cabalistic_; and made\nthese callings mysteries to the rest of the world.\n\nWhat was intended to be evidence of fitness, was soon perverted to be a\nform of _initiation_ into an exclusive Society; whose members insisted,\nnot upon fitness, but upon compliance with arbitrary rules. This was\nmade especially the case with the Law, and with Medicine. The _degree_\nwas supposed to refer to proper qualifications for the practice of Law,\nand knowledge of Medicine, with its proper use in the healing art. It\ndid nothing of the sort. It gave a _presumption_ (but by no means a\ntrue one) that its holder knew something of the ancient Roman and Greek\nlanguages: not any presumption that, in the case of Medicine, there was\nany knowledge of the articles of Medicine, nor of their proper use;\nor of the human body to which they were to be administered. Nor any,\nthat in the Law, there was any knowledge of the Statutes, laws and\ncustoms of the Realm, nor even of its Common annals! Medicine and Law\nsuffered from this _Sham_; because men naturally used what little they\ndid know; and, as to the Roman tongue, _some_, and the Greek, _less_,\nwere in their heads; and the whole practice of Medicine and Law was in\ntheir ignorant hands; what could follow, but to muddle _these_ with the\nuseless obscurity and jargon of the unknown forms!\n\nThe Priests had also thrown around the Superstition the same jargon,\nand kept up the requisition for a _degree_--as if any true morality\nand worship were necessarily connected with a _literature_, denounced\nby themselves as impure and _pagan_! Notwithstanding these ignorant\nand selfish abuses, it was impossible to make the acquisition of\neven such narrow learning wholly useless. It was narrow, and even\nhurtful, by being perverted to selfish ends, and preventing honest and\nindependent research. Still, it did work upon some minds to better\nuse; and it gradually evolved a better learning, when the Ancient\nLiterature really worked in free and broader channels. The High-Castes\nare less indifferent to literary attainments; and learning, in a\nmore comprehensive sense, is becoming more esteemed. It is no longer\nlimited to verbal knowledge; to ancient, dead forms--though these\nare still so paramount that, if a man were to be the wisest and most\nlearned of mankind, and was deficient in these, he could not receive a\n_Degree_--he would be unlearned!\n\nUseful, true and honest knowledge, outside the great Halls of Learning,\nis making some advance; though _in them_, the old, pedantic, and\nsuperstitious notions yet prevail. The new _Literati_, founders of\na larger and truer teaching, endeavour with difficulty to get some\nrespect and honour to attach to the _degrees_ which they timidly\nregister. The High-Caste, in general, disregard this better knowledge,\nand adhere to the old Superstitions and traditions--regarding that\nman only as learned who has the ancient badge; though, to any useful\npurpose, a fool.\n\nThe High-Caste also stupidly support the old preparatory schools; and\nwill not, if they can help it, suffer any of the Lower-Caste to enter\nthem.\n\nIn these, the barbarous customs continue; if one goes into them, he is\nat once carried backwards into the _dark ages_ (as even the Barbarians\ncall them); ages, when the Priests had all the Learning--wretched as\nit was--and when the _Superstition_ coloured and directed everything.\nHere, the dead tongues are the chief studies, with something of\nthe ancient _puzzles_ as to Lines and Points--for the most part\nuseless--with a style of administration fitted to the savage brutality\nof those times. The only part of the training cared for by the youths,\nis that which developes the forces of the body. The disgusting _Ring\nFight_, referred to elsewhere, is a common pastime; and the lad is a\nmilksop [kou-ad] who really avoids the rude crowd, and wishes to study.\nTo be respected he must fight his way, and be feared. If, by chance,\nsome lad of the Lower-Caste be entered, by the foolish wish of the\nfather to bring the son into the _polished_ circle of the High-Caste,\nhe will be _polished off_ (as these young Barbarians say), in a manner\nnever dreamed of. The poor lad will be beaten, humiliated, and driven\nfrom the School; unless, indeed, he be strong enough to bully and beat\nhis tormentors!\n\nVery comically, in one part of these brutal fights, when one has got\nhis antagonist completely in his power, and can bruise him as he\npleases, the position is called _being in Chancery_! One of the fittest\nillustrations possible, of the universality of the judgment which\nplaces that Court among things the most repulsive!\n\nThe younger in these schools are the _Slaves_, for the time being, to\nthe older and stronger; in fact, the whole effect of the training is\nreally to make these youths selfish, quick of quarrel, hardy of body,\nand barbarous; to prepare them for the lives of predatory exploit,\nupon which fortune and all the best honours depend--learning being\nsubordinate, and disregarded, unless it further the main purpose.\n\nForce is still the god of these Barbarians, and _Jah_ is worshipped\nbecause he, in this, fits them. The intellect is improved only that\nForce may be developed and disciplined to its most effective use.\n\nOne sees this everywhere. To invent the most destructive engines of\nwar for the wholesale slaughter of the human species, to add to the\nswiftness of movement, to the durability and weight of action, to the\nmeans of assault and of defence, to bend the mind to uses based upon\nthe idea that the normal condition of man is that of _a tiger with\nman's intellect_, to make the beast something inexpressibly dreadful!\n\nThe greater portion of the people remain sunk in the grossest\nignorance--scarcely knowing (the most of them) much even of the\nSuperstition, other than crude notions of Hell and the Devil. In\nthis, probably, they are not much to be pitied; though in losing the\nprecepts of Christ, and seeing around them the conduct of Christ-god\nworshippers, they are to be commiserated. They look with the contempt\nof ignorance upon foreigners, and call the people of distant seas\n_Heathen_, only fit for the Hell! As I have said, in another place,\nsome attempts are being made to give this degraded populace, at\nleast, the rudiments of learning. The task is hard, and made nearly\nimpracticable by the stolid indifference of the Low-Castes, and their\npositive hostility to anything which interferes with their habits.\nThey are very English, not different from their betters, and resent\nany sort of change as an interference with their individual freedom\nof action. To make these degraded beings _slaves_, you must not seize\nthe individual--you must act upon them as a class--and they resent the\nattempt to teach them. Compulsion will be resorted to. The English\nBarbarians have a proverb [li-tze], \"One may lead a horse to the water,\nbut who can make him drink?\" These people may be forced to the springs\nof learning, but who shall make them drink--unless _beer_? (This is the\ncommon drink, very muddling; used to an astonishing quantity.)\n\nThe women are not admitted to the Halls of Learning, though they are\nto be seen everywhere. Men do not wish them to be educated in those\nthings admired by men--it would, as they think, make brutes of them.\nIn this they are right; yet there is no consistency of idea in the\ngeneral treatment of the sex, as will easily be gathered from these\n_observations_.\n\nA learned woman--that is, one who has acquired the sort of education\nrecognised by the _Literati_--is disliked by her own sex as well as by\nthe men. The men will not marry her, unless she can buy a husband. This\nshe may be able to do if she have money in abundance.\n\nThe things which may make them attractive and entertaining to the\nmen, and be likely to secure a desirable husband, are the only things\ncared for. Some music, some drawing, a little acquaintance with the\nlanguage of the chief tribe on the main parts, reading and writing,\nare the intellectual studies. But the engrossing pursuits are those\nwhich are supposed to add to female attractiveness. To DRESS, so as\nto enhance the delight of form; to cover, and yet to show with added\nsuggestion; to move with grace; to carry the head; to use with tender,\nor arch, or modest, or haughty expression, the eyes; to turn the feet\nand arrange the limbs; to make the shoulders beautiful, and the neck\nand bust charming; to torture the hair and ornament the whole body;\nthe ear-tips, the fingers, the eyebrows and lashes--to do these, and\ninnumerable other things by which the sex shall be made _irresistible_\n[Kou-ket], these are the real cares. _Dancing_ [ma-d-wo] is among the\nmost admired of all accomplishments, and the game of _Waltzing_ its\nmost perfect development. In this art of dancing both sexes take part,\nand I may merely say to our Flowery Land, that we have nothing like it,\nand what little we have in any degree to represent it is confined to\n_licensed_ girls, without, even with them, permitting men to take part!\nIn this dancing the utmost female art (_blandishment_) is permitted,\nand it is the one by which, and in the intricacies of which the male is\nmost surely expected to be ensnared!\n\nWomen are, also, particularly among the High-Caste, taught in riding on\nhorses, in driving them attached to carriages; in running and walking;\nand even in swimming. Also in rowing in boats, in the use of bows and\narrows, and many other things, which are very strange to us. But the\nsex like passionately the outdoor sports of men; and, in truth, show\nthe barbarous instinct quite as clearly as do the males. They are\nattached to dogs, cats, and other creatures, which they fondle and\n_dandle_ in the most disgusting manner.\n\nThe women of the Low-Castes, to the best of their ability, follow\nthe example of their superiors; and make such copy as they can. They\nimitate the dress, the gait, the _airs and graces_ of the High-Caste,\noften with a ludicrous effect! When they dance, they may not dance with\nthe elegant _abandon_ [lan-gu-tze] of the lazy and rich, but they can\ncontrive to be quite as _effective_! The male of the Low-Caste feels\nbut cannot escape the snare!\n\n_Accomplishments_, directed to the one object of finding a desirable\nman, who will take them at the least cost off the hands of their\nrelatives, are the things which occupy the time of women; the lower\norders, in so far as possible, giving to the poor imitations that time\nwhich ought to go to useful objects. A poor and obscure girl prefers to\nbe _something like_ a lady (that is, a bad copy in dress and bearing),\nthan to be really instructed in letters: because she sees herself more\nadmired by the male, and more likely to dispose of herself to a husband.\n\nThe great pursuit among High-Caste families is man--a man who may\nbe bought, and whom it is desirable to buy, to be a husband for a\ndaughter, or relative. All domestic art and diplomacy are bent to\nthis end; and, as men do not like learned women, whom they nick-name\n_strong-minded_, women do not wish to be learned. If from exceptional\ncircumstances a young woman be well educated, and wish to marry, she\ncarefully conceals her knowledge, and displays her accomplishments,\nand all \"the power of her charms\" (as the English poets have it). An\neducated female had better appear to be an _accomplished_ fool, than a\nwise and learned woman--if she wish to buy a husband. For she must have\na large sum, indeed, if she be known to be learned!--a _Blue-stocking_\n[Zu-re-to].\n\nThere are some women who have acquired knowledge, and look with disdain\nupon the _arts_, _airs_, and _graces_ of their \"weak Sisters.\" They\nappear in public Halls of debate (as talking-places are called); and,\nmixing with men, assume an equality of mental force and culture. They\ninterest themselves like men, in all matters of general concern. They\ntake in hand, or endeavour to take in hand, _the care of Women_; and\ndemand an enlarged sphere for her action, and a reformed and proper\nrecognition of her _rights_. Hence, these women are called, besides\nstrong-minded, _Women's rights_ women. They are nearly always old,\nugly, and wholly and hopelessly incapacitated from longer pursuing men;\neven, in their inordinate vanity, _that_ pursuit is abandoned.\n\nThere are some trifling exceptions--of women who like to astonish,\nand of others who, in _talking_, find a means of living--to whom all\npersonal comeliness is not yet a tradition. But for these, the _Women's\nrights_ movement would dwindle away; these sometimes commanding an\ninfluence either of money or family, draw into their circle a few\nmen--remarkable, in general, for eccentricity of some kind, or led very\noften completely by a woman of the order.\n\nThe whole thing is inexplicable to our social usages; but is not an\nexcrescence--only a natural outgrowth upon a diseased system. The\nposition of women in the Barbarian Society is a feature very striking\nand very anomalous, and may receive attention in another place.\n\nOn the whole, one may see that education in its true and exalted sense\nis scarcely comprehended among the Barbarians. The moral function\nand the mind subordinate to that, and the body--its passions, its\ngreed, its brutality, wholly subordinate to the morally trained\nmind--education, grounded upon this _central idea_, has but feeble\nrecognition.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nOF THE LITERATURE OF THE ENGLISH.\n\n\nThere are innumerable books; and the conceit of these Barbarians\nattaches to them as to everything in their _Enlightened World_\n(Litz-i-ten). Nothing outside of the Christ-god worshippers is allowed\nto be enlightened--all else is darkness. This is true as to their\nopinion, strange as it looks; and all the Literature in every part of\nit shows this. The attainments and the experience of all to whom this\nworship is unknown, receive no other than a curious attention from a\nfew of the literati. But we know that this conceit is absurd; ignorant\nand superstitious Barbarians really think that, without the adoption\nof their _Jah-Christ-Jew_ superstition, with all the _Canons_, no true\nmorality, no real civilisation, exists, nor can exist!\n\nThis I must premise; because we may dismiss at once the larger\nportion of the Barbarian Literature, inasmuch as it relates to the\ngreat Superstition. It is everywhere, striking into and permeating\neverything, to be sure; but I refer to works avowedly devoted to it. It\nmakes the Books largely unreadable to one having no sympathy with the\nauthor; and it requires patience and a long use to get over the disgust\ncaused by the offensive pretensions and ignorant references.\n\nThe Poetry of a people is generally placed _first_ among the Barbarian\n_Literati_; and of this form the Western tribes are very fond. The\nEnglish boast that in this they excel all others; though, for that\nmatter, the same boast is made in everything.\n\nThe larger part of the Poetry may be called _trash_ (ru-b-isti).\nIterations and reiterations of the same conceits, the same shallow\nsentiments, the same metaphors, mostly of an amatory and indelicate\nsort. Poems, often tedious, verbose, strangely mixed with matters\nof the Superstition and of the ancient (Roman) myths; laudatory\nperformances, _beslobbering_ (spr-au-fo) great men with empty\ncompliments, or giving lying exaltation to the fancied virtues of the\neminently bad; dull and long-winded reflections from minds too obscure\nto reflect anything, unless with an added obscurity; an enormous\n_Waste_ (Ban-s-he) which the English themselves never traverse.\n\nPoetry with the Barbarians is far more esteemed than with us, although\nin our annals are found evidences of its immemorial existence. As with\nus, it takes many forms, and is reduced to an art. The two greatest\nnames are Milton and Shakespeare. The first of these is esteemed as\nthe most sublime of all poets, ancient or modern--but it is needful to\nfix the quality, the essence of the sublime! Of the gloomy grandeur of\nthe man, and of his power of suggesting the vast and the intangible,\nthere can be no doubt. Nor is he wanting in a mournful sweetness--the\nplaint of a beneficent being who feels an eternal despair! Nor can it\nbe otherwise, for the grand imagination of Milton is wholly occupied\nwith the devils of the Barbarian Superstition! With its terrible\nimages--with the Hell in which they and lost men for ever burn in\neternal fires, and yet are never consumed! He introduces the reader\n(in his great Poem) to Paradise [Kar-din], where man once lived in\nperfect wisdom and happiness--and here the Poet is full of that sad,\nthat tender, that inexpressible, sweet despair! From this Paradise (as\nsaid elsewhere) man was enticed by Satan, who had been set free from\nHell for the very purpose; and then follow all the surprising pictures,\nvast, terrible, indescribable--only possible to a mind fully possessed\nby all the _horrors_ of the Jew Jah-god Idolatry.\n\nShakespeare, with a healthier mind, one not distorted by the\nSuperstition, and with a human, natural vigour and feeling, writes in\na manner to interest man. On the whole, the English Barbarians place\nhim far above all others of any time or place--call him the Divine\nShakespeare! This is very easy with a people who know nothing of the\npoetry of the great East, nor of that of our Flowery Kingdom--in truth,\nhave but a slight acquaintance with the writers of the other Barbarians!\n\nDisregarding this foolish conceit, we may admit that this man shows\na broad and comprehensive intellect--he is one who knows something\nof himself, and that self is a manly self. And he simply exhibits\n_himself_ in those creations of his fancy, wherein a great variety\nof men and women show the passions, follies, and changing interests\nof life. He has the power of vividly seeing and of clearly showing\nwhat in his mind he sees, and in language often low and uncouth, but\nfrequently in fine and lofty tones. His certain knowledge of himself\ngives pithy form to his wit; and his expressions are the direct\nutterances of one who sees, not of one who does not nor cannot see.\nHis, on the whole, was a very large and true manhood, which, in spite\nof unfavourable influences and some tarnish, manifested itself, and\noccasionally in grand and beautiful forms. In very garbage there are\nsparkling gems. He often offends decency, but is less indecent than\nhis time--and when he is simply himself, the natural morality of a\nlarge man becomes conspicuous. Some of his minor things, based on the\naffectations of his period, and formed on bad models, which he weakly\ncopies, are not without marks of his rich fancy, yet are so indecent\nthat in our Flowery Land they would be suppressed. None the less, you\nwill find these objectionable verses in the hands of the youth of both\nsexes.\n\nThis degradation of the moral sense is very common. It finds\nform in the versification of those poets whom the English style\n_Amatory_--chiefly with them, but more repulsively with the\nplay-writers. Examples of this indelicacy and coarseness are lying\nabout anywhere. It seems to us very strange: for to what good? No\ndoubt, poetry very properly deals with human emotions and interests;\nbut why should the poet dare to print what he would not dare to utter,\nunless among the shameless!\n\nSome of these trivialities are not wanting in sweetness and\ntenderness--and some have a very refined feeling. The great blemish is\n_falseness_.\n\nThe Western Barbarians addict themselves always to a false and affected\nmode whenever they address themselves to the female: and the style is\nabsurd. It is borrowed from the obsolete manners of ages ago, when it\nwas the fashion [phan-ti-te] to pretend the most exalted reverence\nfor the sex. They were addressed as goddesses, and there was a whole\narmoury of weapons of Love, from which these fantastic poets armed\ntheir divinities, and pretended to be pierced through and through,\nwounded, bleeding, at their feet! Dying, transfixed, and rolling their\nlanguishing eyes in death, imploring the goddesses to save them, even\nif by one glance of their bright eyes! The amount of this nonsense is\nperfectly astonishing!\n\nI give a fair specimen here from a much admired writer of this class:--\n\n \"Sweet Phillis, idol of my heart,\n Oh, turn to me those tender eyes!\n Transfix my breast with Cupid's dart,\n But listen to my dying sighs!\n\n \"I cling, imploring, to your knees;\n Oh, cruel goddess, turn to me!\n One kiss the burning pain will ease--\n Thy lips give Immortality!\"\n\nThe Elegiac [mo-un-fu] is, perhaps, the most cultured among the refined\npoets. The most distinguished of the English living writers of verse\nis very elegant in this form. He cannot emancipate himself from the\nhabits of his people--for the wretched he can find no solace but in the\nSuperstitions of the Christ-god worship. He demands a _Sacrifice_ quite\ninhuman, when he suggests the only remedy for human grief. Possibly,\nhe finds in this, a meaning of a different kind from what the language\n(used in the Superstition) itself implies. He may see a meaning common\nto all sorrowful and thoughtful men--_Self-Sacrifice_, demanded by the\nhighest perception of justice, and, therefore, inevitable. In this\ndepartment some of the minor poets sing very sweetly, tenderly--with\na nice refinement. Generally, however, there is a sort of despair\nwailing in an under-tone of pathos. It would seem to arise from the\ngloomy spirit of the Barbarian nature, intensified by the terrible\nSuperstition.\n\nThe comic poets are coarse, trivial, and not much esteemed. There\nis humour, but it is of the barbarous and unclean. It is frequently\nstrangely fantastic, and delights in laughing at the terrific in the\n\"_Sacred Writings_,\" or at the Priests, in a covert manner; often in\n_travesties_ of the prayers, _rites_, and other _holy_ things, which no\none would dare openly to ridicule. Poetry is not much read, unless by\nyoung girls and lads, who, in the season of the sentiments, find food\nto feed their desires, or to print their tender epistles and speeches,\nin the Sentimental Authors.\n\nVery rarely is there anything striking or true; and the mass of Verses,\nafter receiving the _paid-for_ attention of the daily writers, sleep a\nsleep of oblivion.\n\nThe Prose writings are innumerable--largely, however, mere _re-hashes_\n[mi-pi-stu] of existing works. It is a trade to make these new forms of\nold books--cutting down, working over, and revising. History, accounts\nof bloody fights, forays, commotions, massacres, and burnings, now by\none Christ-god tribe and now by another; Biography, Travels, Lives of\n_Great men_ (never heard of out of some Barbarian tribe); these are\nmany, and read by the _Literati_. A few books, rarely read, devoted\nto _Science_ and to _Art_, are printed, commonly to the ruin of the\nprinters.\n\nOf romances and novels there are no ends. With these and the newspapers\nthe English Barbarians almost entirely occupy themselves, when they do\nread. The novels pretend to portray _life_, in its usual vicissitudes\nand with a natural show of the feelings. But the feeling depicted\nis that of Love, and the Life, the life of a Lover. In this curious\ncreature, unknown in our Central Kingdom, the English young people of\nboth sexes delight. I cannot describe him; he has no existence outside\nof a diseased brain. The great Shakespeare describes him, \"Sighing like\na furnace, with a woful ballad made to his mistress' eyebrow!\" which\nwill do as well as a more extended notice.\n\nThere are _Metaphysical_ works. We have no term to represent it. It is\na book which dimly suggests _phantoms_--things unseen, and not to be\nseen--mere words without bodies. Usually, making the matters of the\ncommon Worship still more inscrutable.\n\nClose to these, and blended often in a confused mixture with them--a\ncompound defying all reasonable analysis--come the Philosophical. This\nterm is a grand one with the Barbarians, and embraces all knowledge.\nThe Philosophical writers pretend to the most exalted insight and\noutsight--they measure the whole infinite and finite, mind, matter,\nand the very nature of moral and divine things. The Philosopher loves\nWisdom, and Wisdom loves and teaches him!\n\nEach philosopher, however, knowing everything, knows some things better\nthan others; and usually exhibits to the world that _eccentricity_\nby which he is known. He parades this on all public occasions of the\n_Literati_; and feels happy and serene mounted on his _Hobby-horse_\n(again we have nothing to fit this word)--he appropriates the name of\nthe ridden Hobby. Thus, some time since, one of these discovered and\ntaught that man was an Ape--an Ape of high form. This discovery was\nnot very well received; however, he was afterwards honoured by a title\nderived from his ancestor, and styled the _Simian_ philosopher. In the\nold Roman, _Simia_ means Ape. He is vulgarly and better known, however,\nas the Hobby-horse philosopher, from his own name, _Hobbs_!\n\nJust now, this speculation has revived again, with but slight change.\nOne Darwin dreams of immortality from the usefulness of _his_ theory.\nIn this, man no doubt is found in the _Simia_, but he _passes through_\nthat type; it is well enough to find there the immediate origin, but\nthe true _germ_ lies further back among the _tadpoles_!\n\nI do not know what tadpoles are, and did not think it worth while to\ninquire.\n\nThis philosophy, called Darwinian, is greatly admired for its\nprofundity--especially by the select circle of Mutual Admiring\nThinkers--but is strongly denounced by the Bonzes, and by the Halls of\nLearning and Literati of the Superstition. It makes man no immortal\nbeing at all, these say; and dethrones all the gods.\n\nIn our Flowery Land we may smile at these speculations and\n_eccentricities_--for such and similar vagaries are as old as\nLiterature; and the special notion of Darwin, as to the _Origin of\nSpecies_, has not even the attraction of novelty. The _speculation of\nevolution_, by which all visible forms are developed from a form less\nperfect below it, and this from another below that, and so on, down to\nthe beginning, is a clumsy mode of stating that original forms were\nfew, and contained wrapped up in them, many--and that possibly there\nmay have been primarily only _one_, containing all! The Sovereign Lord\nHimself! In truth, it is the immemorial _out of nothing_ idea; for when\na creator of worlds, in the shape of man, has got to a single form\ncontaining all, he has yet to account for that _Single Form_.\n\nThe few, most advanced of the Barbarian Philosophers, cut adrift\nentirely from the _Superstition_. They copy largely from the Greeks,\nRomans, and ancient peoples, who said, on such subjects, over and over\nagain what these modern imitators say--and said it better. In _Physics_\nthese moderns think themselves wiser. They may be, in the use of some\nthings, but are not in the nature. Our Sect called _Taos-se_ resemble\nthese speculative writers in many things: the English may not directly\nteach the _Metempsychosis_; but in effect it is the same. Evolution may\nhold to an original germ which is fixed and indestructible; yet what\nmatters if to the observer this germ takes on every possible shape! The\nMetempsychosis does not contradict the notion of an original germ--it\nis entirely consistent with it. This speculative inquiry into the\nnature of things is as old as man, who, even before he knows how to\nformulate his thoughts, has the deep shadows of them. The Old Greeks\nintroduced _the Literature_ of these fancies to the Western Barbarians,\nthough themselves were no more than bright and beautiful dreamers\nof old dreams. The human intellect will always, as it has always,\nsearch into the unsearchable, applying to it whatever of sharpness,\nof imagination, of culture, it may have. There will be the inquiry,\nbut never the answer. The mind itself finds its advantage; nor could\nthe Sovereign Lord have designed otherwise, else the intellect would\nnot persist in a vain task. Nevertheless, wise men rest satisfied with\nthe _intuitions_ of the moral and intellectual nature. The origin and\nessence of the Sovereign Lord and of the visible world cannot be known.\nThe source, the purpose, the end, and the nature of Things are beyond\nthe scope of man. He may ask, and he may find delight in the asking;\nfor new ranges and glimpses of the infinite may flash upon him. But\nwhen he thinks he _knows_--that he has _discovered_--he is a fool!\n\nAnother department of what is called _Philosophy_ deals with the\nmind, as the part just referred to more particularly affects to deal\nwith matter. And writers upon the mind, when they speak of the moral\nfunction, call _that_ by another name. Thus we have the _Intellectual_\nand _Moral_ philosophers, with their many books. Very commonly this\ndivision is not sustained, and moral and merely mental evolutions\nrun together. Indeed, there are those who deride this division, and\nassert that the moral has no real existence; that the mind itself is\nbut matter _instinct_ of life, and has no existence independent of\nmaterial organisms. They say that man is an animal endowed with _Life_,\nand that this occult and hidden force is indivisible. That divisions\nof the faculties may be convenient to give exactness to mental\nmovements, but are otherwise fanciful. They deny a \"Moral faculty,\"\nasserting that it is only a peculiar refinement of the life-_instinct_;\nthat the wish to do honestly is no more than this, and, educated\nto enlarged views, expands into all that man conceives of Justice.\nThat you may just as easily train one to do dishonestly; and then an\nhonest act gives pain. This proves the very proposition denied--the\nfaculty may be misinformed--the pain demonstrates the existence of\nthe faculty. An animal has the Life-Instinct or mind, if you will;\nbut who imagines that the animal is ever pained by any remorse! To\nthis, these philosophers reply that the pain does not really exist\nonly as the remains of a _secondary instinct_, remembering consciously\nor unconsciously the penalty awaiting _disobedience_. The animal,\nthey say, may be so trained that it will feel this pain or shame; and\nman, for ages disciplined, transmits to his offspring this _secondary\ninstinct_ of inherited fear; and, _here_, is the so-called moral\nfaculty.\n\nI may be pardoned in this tedious attempt to give the Flowery Kingdom\nsome insight into the thoughts of the Barbarians on abstract matters,\nnot for their novelty, but as a further illustration of that which is\nso well understood by our _Literati_--to say, the ceaseless activity\nof the human mind and its tireless inquiry into the things of the\nmighty world. A beneficent fact or it would not be. Perverted by\nvain thinkers, who do not think, because egotist; yet in humble\nmen, conscious of ignorance, a solace. These reverence the Sovereign\nLord, never comprehending other than His infinite Wisdom (and this by\ndelightful flashes), nor His works, nor His methods, nor the use of\nMan, nor of any the smallest thing, nor the origin, nor the design!\nEnough that He is, and that by some inscrutable, though certain sense,\nman, with a grateful joy bounds towards Him, claims to be His, and\nfeels Immortal!\n\nThe Barbarian _Literati_ have often rested upon the Greeks as final in\nMetaphysics. Plato, whom they call Divine, was very generally followed\nin his notion respecting the eternal and independent existence of\nspirit and matter. But the newer men insist upon one substance only,\nand remove the Sovereign Lord so far back into the deeps of an Unknown,\nthat he vanishes, or becomes an unintelligent and unconscious Cause.\nHere again reproducing the _Fate_ of remote antiquity.\n\nOne school of Philosophers indulges in a curious form of materializing\nthe mind. Pretending to fix all the mental and moral processes in the\nvery substance of the brain, they declare that by a careful examination\nof the head, the exact qualities of the individual may be discovered!\nSome of these pretend to be teachers and _Indicators_--for fees, giving\na precise chart to any one who wishes of the forces of the brain, so\nthat he may order his affairs accordingly.\n\nThey profess to tell parents in what art or business a child should be\nplaced, and in what manner certain good qualities may be made to grow\nand bad ones to shrink! They say that over each thinking part of the\nbrain rises a corresponding _bump_ [Ko-be], that these _bumps_ contain:\nsome thoughts of music, some of hate, some of love, some of numbers,\nsome of place, and so on. They make charts showing these bumps and the\nthoughts which lie beneath them! These they sell, marking the bumps\n(after examination) to show the person what he is. If, for instance,\nhis _acquisitiveness_ (thoughts to take things) is a very large bump,\nhe must develop a counteracting bump or he will assuredly become a\nthief! It is not quite clear how this development is to be brought\nabout. Some carry this absurdity so far as to say that a man with bad\nbumps is not responsible--he ought rather to be regarded as an object\nto be cared for by the State. Before the bumps of the child be formed\nand hardened, _any_ form may be given to them, by applying a gentle and\ncontinuous pressure. Government, therefore, ought to have all children\nexamined in youth, and apply to the heads the proper moulds! In this\nway a perfectly moral society would be assured!\n\nI refer to this nonsense as the only novel speculation among the\nWestern Barbarians. And any one can readily discover in this, old\nnotions moulded into a defined and material shape, to give charlatans\n[Qu-ak-st] an opportunity to plunder.\n\nThere are many books of the _Moral Philosophers_, who make a _Science_\nof certain movements of mind, and call it _Ethical_. But these books\nare to our habits useless or absurd--sometimes positively hurtful.\nThe idolatries and superstitions colour and distort--distinctions\nare confounded, and a rational morality wanting. A merely Jewish\nordinance from the _Sacred Writings_ is made as important as a plain\nmoral precept. The human conscience is overloaded with arbitrary and\nunreasonable matters taken from the _Superstition_, and, bewildered,\ndespairs of well-doing. To offend in some priestly _dogma_, is more\nterrible than to break an established law of honesty. Disobedience in\nthe false demoralises the conscience as much as disobedience in the\ntrue, when both are received as true.\n\nIn fact most of the _moral_ books are merely books written to uphold\nthe great Superstition, and the morality is debased by its injurious\nconnection. By what strange perversion could the cultivated mind ever\nbe brought to announce a principle like this, to say; \"Belief alone\nsaves man from eternal Hell; morality without it is only a snare of the\nDevil.\" _Belief_ means an undoubting acceptance of all the pretensions\nof the _Superstition_ (as explained elsewhere). What must be the effect\nof teaching so false and presumptuous an enormity? The Sovereign\nLord will not deign to look with pity. He is a consuming fire! Heart\nand hands pure--a life of disinterestedness--worship warm, grateful.\nNothing worse. First, BELIEVE--in the most monstrous thing which the\ndiseased human imagination ever created--the Jew-Jah theology and\nworship!\n\nWhen a system of morals is based upon such a pretension, it can only be\nhurtful; unless, as is largely the fact, the healthy human _instinct_\nunconsciously rejects the error. Still, great harm is done--must\nbe done. And how much of prevailing licentiousness and barbarism\nmay be placed to account of this false system cannot be defined.\nIt is the immediate father of _Atheism_. Men reject the tremendous\nassumptions and believe nothing. But tender consciences, those in\nwhom the divine faculty is large and clear, in general, directed by\na true consciousness, simply disregard the horribly false things and\nattach themselves to the true. In this, vindicating the nobility\nof nature, which rises to its true recognition of the Sovereign\nLord, _in spite_ of surrounding errors. But, others, not so strong,\ndelicate in conscience and feeble in mind, become the victims of this\ndreadful system. Thus it is also the father of _Idolatry_. For these\nvictims, fearful of eternal destruction, place themselves entirely in\nthe hands of the Bonzes, and adore all the gods and observe all the\n_rites_. They cannot be sure, of themselves, that they do properly\n_Believe_; a thing of a very mysterious nature, concerning which (as\nI have remarked) the contention is ceaseless. Nor can these victims\nof the Superstition, ardent _devotees_ though they be, always obtain\nsatisfactory _evidence_ that their _Salvation_ is sure. Then follow\nthe self-imposed penances, and the sacrifices imposed by the Bonzes.\nThey are _victimised_ by the Bonzes in an endless variety of ways. Some\nbuild Temples; some go about begging, in mean garbs, to get money for\nthe _poor_ Bonzes; and the like; much as we see among our superstitious\ndevotees. Superstition merely reproduces its natural effects, varied\naccording to the circumstances. Still there remain those poor creatures\nto whom no escape is possible. They struggle in vain with the dark\ndoubts which envelop them. They believe in all the horrors of their\nworship: that but a few are saved from hell; that goodness, charity,\nself-sacrifice, gifts to the Temples, to the poor, even to the\nBonzes--_nothing avails_. Unless they have _believed_ and been duly\naccepted and enrolled among the _Elect-few_, they are merely children\nof the Devil, awaiting death, when they become his associate in _Fires\nof the tormented_, for ever and ever! These poor wretches feel already\nall the _horrors_ of the damned. They find no solace in a moral life;\nno peace in a grateful heart, turned to a benign, Heavenly Father. To\nyield to the natural emotions, to indulge in this peace, is vanity--is\nto be ensnared in the wiles of the enemy of Souls!\n\nThey catch sometimes feebly at a _hope_ of Salvation, then fall\nagain into a dreadful despair. At last the feeble mind gives way.\nThey feel themselves already lost; they fancy they have committed\nthe Sin which Jah himself will never pardon--(to use the words of\nthe _Sacred Writings_)--the _sin against the Holy Ghost_, for ever\nunpardonable--they writhe, they cry, they beat their breasts, they fall\ndown in unspeakable agony--\"the pains of Hell have got hold of them!\"\nThis is again from the _Sacred books_. The scene closes in death, or\nworse, in a _mad-house_; where in chains or under vigilant keepers (to\nprevent self-destruction or the destruction of others), these wretches\nvanish from human hope and sympathy! The frightful Superstition in\nthese victims has been a _reality_! And no human mind can bear that and\nlive!\n\nI will close these remarks upon the _Literature_ of the English\nBarbarians, by giving some examples of the different poetic\ncompositions.\n\nFrom an Amatory poet, who refers to the conjugal endearments of the\nRoman Jupiter and his goddess--Queen Juno, on Mount Ida, where,\naccording to the old traditions of the Greeks, these gods often\nresorted:--\n\n \"When Juno makes the bed for Jove,\n And waits the god with blushing grace--\n Soft music charms the air above,\n And breathing fragrance fills the place.\n Mortals expect the deep repose;\n Ocean is calm, the Winds are still,\n The heavenly rapture overflows,\n And Nature feels th' ecstatic thrill.\"\n\nI think our poorest poets could have improved upon \"makes the bed.\" In\ncold England, however, bed-making is important. And for a wife of the\nUpper Castes to make the bed for her Lord, with her own hands, is to\nshow a great love and devotion. It is laughable to think of the goddess\nso domestically employed, though the top of Mount Ida must be cold\nenough!\n\nThe poetry of the Idolatry has much of an amatory sort, very curiously\nmixed with its terrors. I give a rather refined specimen, quite free of\nthe diabolic:--\n\n \"What grief, what darkness fills my breast,\n That coldly I have strayed from thee!\n Thou art my Love, my Life, my Rest;\n All other love doth fade and die.\n Oh, never may the joys of sense,\n Entice my ardent soul again!\n Thou art my only sweet Defence--\n To love thee not is endless pain!\"\n\nFrom an unknown writer I extract the following, who refers to a great\nSailor of the Western Barbarians. This man, repressing the revolts of\nhis crew, with undaunted mind, day after day, and night after night,\nfor weeks and weeks, still kept on, steering _westerly_ across the\ninfinite, big seas. Possessed with one great and fixed idea--that _Land\nlie beyond_. At length, when all hope had nearly died, far away like\na cloud, the great _New World_ was discovered! We know of this in our\nAnnals, in the dynasty _Ming_.\n\n \"To be--this marks the nobler man--this Force,\n This _visioned_ soul, which sees the shadow cast\n Of a great Object in its every course,\n Urging it onward--common men will rest\n With common things; such spirits are possessed\n By greater somethings, which will not be hushed\n With 'lullabys'--which are within the breast\n _Like inspirations_--sleepless as the rush\n Of world-surrounding waves, and which no earth can crush!\"\n\nThis is a writer who takes the _Sea_ as the scene of his poem. The\nstyle is affected; but much liked.\n\nI add below an example of _Blank Verse_, a form greatly in use:--\n\n \"The Morn, exultant, on the mountain tops,\n Leads in the Day--and over all the World\n Delightful Joy spreads forth his glorious wings!\"\n\nThis appears to be a parody of Shakespeare, who says beautifully:--\n\n \"Oh, see where jocund Day stands tip-toe,\n On the distant, misty mountain tops!\"\n\nVery much of the poetry is obscured, and spoilt by the influence of\nthe Superstition; and very much by artificiality and affectations.\nAnd everywhere there are poor or indifferent imitators of the ancient\nGreeks and Romans; upon whom the _Literati_ mould their poetic conceits.\n\nOf the Comic and common it is well to read little. Coarseness and\nindecency seem inseparable from all vulgar humour.\n\nThe Descriptive, tinged with the melancholy of the Superstition and\nBarbaric gloom, is often fine and smooth--sometimes tender and elegant.\n\nI give an extract from an author of no repute, but agreeable; and the\nmore so to me, because inoffensive. It is not defiled by the Idolatry\nof the Barbarians:--\n\n \"_Spring-time_ of life, with open-eyed delight,\n Wondering at beautiful earth and sky!\n Budding in sweet expectancy, and bright\n With smiles and charming grace, and blushingly\n Unconscious of a Love, just to be born--\n A trembling Joy, which smiles and tears adorn!\"\n\nFrom the same, written in the open country; which, though obscure\nsometimes, flows on finely, eloquently:--\n\n \"Stretched to the brilliant sky, on all sides clear,\n Are hills, and dales, and groves, and golden corn--\n Whilst in the peerless air, all things are near;\n And far or near they each and all adorn!\n Here, let us rest, on this fair, breezy hill,\n Beneath the shade of this high, spreading beech--\n And feel and see that we are Nature's still:\n Her Peace and Beauty ever in our reach.\n Her calm, majestic glory, harvest-crowned,\n Fills heaven and earth, and blends them into _one_.\n How vast and solemn bends the blue profound;\n How sweet and strong th' immortal gods move on!\n Move on, resistless, yet, with tender grace--\n Inflexible, yet soft as summer rain--\n Intangible--as where yon shadows race,\n With nimble Zephyrs, o'er the waving grain!\n Ineffable, though murmurs everywhere,\n Swell into Anthems of delightful tone;\n And smiling hill-tops, and the radiant air,\n Rest in expressive Silence, all their own!\n And there, by Avon's stream, are Warwick's towers;\n And, here, is labour toiling in the fields:\n For Lord [Tchou] or serf alike, the patient hours\n Give back to Nature all which Nature yields.\n Still human hope aspires and will not die;\n _Will_ rear aloft its monumental walls;\n Informed by Instinct builds as builds the bee--\n Mounting secure where stumbling Reason falls!\n So Temples rise _Immortelles_ of the race;\n Where mouldering with the stones tradition clings--\n Touching the landscape with ennobling grace,\n And giving dignity to common things.\n\n        *       *       *       *       *\n\n The day declines, and so my holiday;\n Care slumbering by my side awakes again;\n Grasps on my hand and leads my steps away--\n So rudely rules the Martha of my brain!\"\n\nThe _Martha_ is a scolding, busy _house-wife_ [bro-msti], taken from\nan incident narrated in the _Sacred Writings_. The writer refers to\nTemples in a pleasing way, and to the \"mouldering stones,\" where,\nabout the dead, innumerable legends survive. Burials are near to\nthe Temples, and the graves are on _Holy_ ground. His reference is\ncomprehensive--meaning the universal _Hope of Immortality_, symbolized\nby the lofty Fanes.\n\nI give below a few of the absurdities from the _Comic_, taken from a\ngreatly esteemed author in this Line.\n\n \"Three wise men of Gotham\n Went to sea in a bowl [tou-se];\n If the bowl had been stronger,\n My tale had been longer!\"\n\nThe meaning of which is, I suppose, that when wise men do foolish\nthings they no more escape the consequences of folly than others.\n\n \"I bet you a crown to a penny,\n   And lay the money down,\n That I have the funniest horse of any\n   In this or in any town.\n _His tail is where his head should be_--\n 'You bet! Well, come and see.'\n And sure enough, within his stall,\n The horse was _turned_--and that was all!\"\n\nAnother, very ridiculous:--\n\n \"There was a man of our town\n Who thought himself so wise,\n He jumped into a bramble bush,\n And scratched out both his eyes.\n But when he saw his eyes were out,\n With all his might and main\n He jumped into another bush,\n And scratched them in again!\"\n\nThis would _seem_ to suggest that a conceited man, having committed\nan egregious blunder, rashly undertakes to remedy it by one equally\nunwise. The folly of conceited impulsiveness!\n\nAnother, and I have done.\n\n \"Little Jack Horner\n Sat in a corner,\n Eating his Christmas pie;\n He put in his thumb,\n And pulled out a plum,\n Oh, what a good boy am I!\"\n\nThis is to encourage children with an idea that, if they be _good_,\nthey shall have _plums_. It is very significant of the low culture. As\nif one were to imagine that the possession of a big plum (riches, or\nthe like) demonstrated the moral excellency of the possessor!\n\nCommentaries and parodies of these _Comic_ trivialities have been\nwritten, and, forsooth, their beauties and meanings need exposition!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nOF TRADE, AND REVENUE DERIVED FROM IT.\n\n\nWe have ourselves, in our maritime parts, some experience of the\nEnglish, as traders [Kie-tee]. Something of their moral character is\nknown, not as traders only, but as representatives of the general\ncivilization of their tribe. It will be a long period before the\nevents of the _opium_ war are forgotten--when these selfish and cruel\nBarbarians came with their big fire-ships and great cannons, and\nmassacred so many of our province, Quantung! Nor will the slaughters\nof the people of our Central Kingdom, and the burnings and plunderings\nat the Illustrious seat of our Exalted, pass out of mind for many\ngenerations. Trade! yes, Trade is the _Moloch_ [Kan-ni-bli] of the\nEnglish; there is nothing (of character) which they will not sacrifice\nto this Idol. The god by which they mostly swear, and whose name\nthey apply to themselves, knew nothing of trade, and his words, as\nrecorded in the _Sacred Writings_, condemn every practice customary in\nit. This inconsistency is always found in the devotees of irrational\nworship; where formal observances stand for practical virtues.\nPerhaps dishonesty in trade is no more conspicuous, than immorality\neverywhere; only traffic touching on all sides, and affecting nearly\nevery interest, carries with it an almost universal debasement. Blind\nand conceited, it is the custom to speak of our _Central Kingdom_\ncontemptuously, and to brand our people as Heathen _thieves_ [ta-ki].\nWe have thieves, and punish them. But how strangely to those of our\npeople who know these Barbarians, this charge sounds! It is notorious\nthat the vile stuff packed up as _Tea_ by our knaves is for the gain\nof English traders; and that the horribly obscene pictures of degraded\nartists find a market with the Barbarians! We punish these plunderers\nwhen we detect them; but these Christians who would _convert_ us\nencourage this immorality!\n\nThe Law-making Houses are continually occupied (and occupied in vain)\nto find remedies for the almost universal crime of _Adulteration_\n[Kon-ti-fyt] _of Food_. Scarcely an article of food, or of drink,\nmedicine, what not, escapes this dangerous cheat. To make a larger gain\nsome cheap admixture, often poisonous and rarely harmless, is added\nto nearly every article. It is not easy to understand how general the\nmoral debasement must be, when a thing of this sort, striking at once\nat health, and even life, is so common as to be scarcely contemned! To\nbe cheated is a kind of _comedy_--one expects to be cheated--cheated\nin his clothes, his wine, his horses, his dogs, his meat, his drink,\nhis beer, his sugar, his tea, _his everything_! To have been honestly\ndealt with is a surprise--a thing to be remarked upon. To have been\ncheated--a _shrug_ of the shoulder--an exclamation--\"Of course!\" In\nfact, almost always the cause of a hearty laugh, especially if a sharp\ntrick--or at another's expense! The very laws of trade are based on\ndishonesty; and a people will not generally be better than their laws.\n\nThe High-Caste affecting to despise trade, do, occasionally, in the\nLaw-making Houses (as I have said), feebly interfere with the general\nrascality. Yet, they are so dependent, indirectly or directly, upon\ntrade or its gains, that they will not do anything to hamper it; and\nany law which touches the utmost freedom of action in _buying and\nselling_, in their opinion, has this effect. On the whole, they say,\nbetter a few rogues flourish, and a few people be poisoned to death,\nthan that _commerce_ (an _euphuism_ for rascally traffic) be injured.\n\nThat man has a fine nature which traffic, in its best ways, cannot\ntarnish; and laws should take their colour from the best--not the\nsordid. The old Romans cultivated the land, and looked with contempt\nupon traffic. When riches and its corruptions lowered manliness, and\nCommerce spread through the provinces--still, the Roman jurisprudence\nbased itself upon equity--it did not place trade upon a pedestal above\nJustice! They made no such Barbarous mistake as to suppose that any\nbusiness of a people could be more important to its prosperity, than\nthe maintainance of right principle!\n\nThe English Barbarians say the interests of the public require a\ndisregard of right; and their famous legal maxim (in the Roman) is\n_Caveat emptor_--the buyer must take care--must sharply watch the\nseller. This is to say, \"The seller is to be expected to cheat; and,\nif the buyer be cheated, let him thank his own stupidity!\" The old\nHeathen Romans made no such immoral rule; they required the most exact\ngood faith upon both sides. The seller could not sell a horse blind\nof one eye, or incurably, though not always visibly, lame, and to the\ncomplaint of the buyer answer, \"Oh! I gave no assurance of soundness.\"\n\nThe High-Caste, despising trade of any useful sort, none the less\ndelight in traffic of a high-caste colour. They deal in pictures,\nequipages, horses, jewels, sculptures, books, dogs, _nick-nacks_ of all\nsorts; know how to bargain, and understand the _tricks_, especially\nin horses, dogs, paintings, and the like, as well as those whom they\naffect to despise.\n\nThe English are, doubtless, successful traders and plunderers. They\nare rough, and brave, and reckless; and in traffic are as unscrupulous\nas in predatory ventures. Their conquests abroad have been incidental\ngenerally, commerce being the immediate object. But they have never\nscrupled to use force when it has seemed fittest. The _plunder_ of a\npeople has been found easier, and the returns quicker and larger, than\nthe slower gains of traffic.\n\nFor this shameful and cruel conduct, the English and other Western\nBarbarians find ample justification in their _Superstition_. For they\nbelieve that the peoples beyond the seas are Heathen, and under the ban\nof _Jah_. Their _Sacred Writings_ so declare; and that \"the Heathen are\ngiven to the Saints as a spoil, and their Lands as an Inheritance.\"\nNow, these Barbarians affirm that they are the Saints; that the people\nwho do not worship their gods are Heathen; and that consequently they\n(these Barbarians) have a right to the possessions and lands of these\ndistant and unoffending tribes! And not only this, that these tribes,\nunder the wrath of _Jah_, and subjects of the Devil and hell, ought\nto be grateful for the inestimable boon of _the Gospel_ (_the Sacred\nWritings_), by which they may learn the way to be saved; may, in fine,\nbecome Christians!\n\nThus it comes about that the intercourse of the Western Barbarians\nwith peoples beyond the seas has been aggressive and piratical. From\nthe earlier part of the dynasty _Ming_, when these Barbarous tribes\nfirst visited the great seas and distant regions in the far West and\nmighty East, the Pope (then worshipped by all the tribes) gave to two\nof them, very devoted to his worship and powerful in ships, the whole\nworld of _Heathen_. This meant all the wide world but that small region\nin Europe wherein the Pope-worshippers lived. To the one tribe, called\n_Portugals_, he gave the whole immense East, and to the other, styled\n_Spaniards_, the vast regions in the West. Thus the two were possessed,\nby the gift of their god, of the whole _Heathen_ world--India and our\nFlowery Kingdom being portions!\n\nIn their many ships, these two tribes, sailing East and West, landed\nupon the distant shores, and seized upon everything which they could.\nThey thought it pleasing to _Jah_ to put to death those who had\noffended him, and were already under _his wrath_ and condemnation: the\nHeathen were justly extirpated, unless they _believed_ and worshipped\n_Jah_!\n\nNot very long after this gift to the two tribes, the English and Dutch,\nhaving quarrelled with the Romish Priests, refused to worship the Pope\nand denied his authority. The Dutch first, and then the English,\ngrowing more powerful in ships, made distant forays for plunder and\ntrade; and, following the tracks of the Portugals and Spaniards,\ndisregarded their pretended _exclusive_ title to the _Heathen_. They\ndetermined to have a portion of this general transfer of the world\nto _Christians_; they were in their own judgment the better, the\n_Reformed_ Christians, and far better entitled!\n\nSince this enormous Blasphemy [Swa-tze] of the Pope, History, as\nknown to the Barbarians, has been, to a large extent, an account of\nits consequences. Wars between the contending _Christians_ for the\ndistant possessions, and savage and cruel depopulation, plunder, and\nsubjugation of the unoffending inhabitants. Whole races of men have\nmelted away in the presence of these Christ-god worshippers; and the\nhorrors of the dreadful Superstition, which in the regions of Europe\nhad made man more like the Devil of his Idolatry than anything human,\nspread, with fire and sword, over the wide world! In the far West,\nbeneath the setting sun, a beautiful and peaceful people, rich and\nnumerous, suffered cruelties too shocking to tell; and in the civilised\nand populous East, the very name of _Christian_ became a synonym of all\nthat is detestable.\n\nNone the less, the English Barbarians, to this day, acting upon these\nChrist-god pretensions, will insist that this _Trade and Plunder_ is\nthe _handmaid_ of Enlightenment, the chief agent in the preparing of\nthe World for a knowledge of the true gods, and the ultimate salvation\nof the Heathen!\n\nTrade is, therefore, a civilising agency and a powerful helper in the\nredemption of mankind from the awful Hell. A few poor Missionaries\nare sometimes added to the general cargo of _means of conversion_.\nThe same ship which transports these Bonzes to convert the benighted\n_pagans_ will, perhaps, have a few volumes of the _Sacred Writings_,\nsome bad rum, worse muskets (more dangerous to him who shoots than to\nhim to whom the shot is directed), gunpowder, flimsy articles too poor\nfor home trade; to these, add the licentious and degraded sailors; and\none sees how well the English Barbarians work to introduce their true\nworship and save the Heathen! But this is feeble: only a trade-ship.\nThe great fire-ships, with big cannons, full of armed and fierce\nbarbarians, which devastate the populous coasts, and burn and plunder\nthe maritime parts--_these_ are illustrious workers in the spread of\nthe Christ-god _Salvation_ and a lofty Civilization! Thus the very\nworship of the Barbarians has helped, by its cruel pretensions, to\n_ingrain_ a wrong notion--one making them immoral and cruel. Taking the\n_Jah_ of the old, huckstering Jews, as an object of idolatry, the whole\npeople has, in trade, become _Jewish_, as in much else.\n\nI have referred to petty cheating, and to that wholesale criminality\nof adulteration. But _fraud_ is very common, and often on an enormous\nscale. Nor is there any remedy. In truth, it is so common, that, as all\nhope to have a turn at its advantage, none care to punish heavily him,\nwho, by chance, has been too bold. The fraud must take the form of open\nrobbery, or be of such grossness as to be hardly disguised, before the\nwrong-doer will be arrested. A man may enjoy unmolested, and even with\nrespect, a great fortune acquired by notorious _trickery_.\n\nSo universal is this toleration of roguery, that the Plays and Pastimes\nare often enlivened by comical illustrations of the various arts,\ntricks, and deceptions practised. The charlatans, rogues, cheats, and\nthe like, are shown in the Lawyer, the Doctor, the Bonze (low-caste),\nand other professions and occupations. Endless are the villanies of the\nLawyer--the _quack_ pretensions and impositions of the Medical man--the\ncant, hypocrisy and meanness of the Bonze.\n\nAmong the professions and trades, the teacher is a brutal _ignoramus_,\nwho beats and starves the wretched children under his care; the nurse\nquietly drinks herself drunk and goes to sleep, leaving the sick man to\ngasp and die for the drink close at hand, but which he cannot reach;\nthe milkman stops at the pump, and fills up his milk-cans with water;\nthe teaman shows and sells you one sort, but delivers a very different;\nthe grocer says his prayers, hurries to his goods, asks his servant if\n\"the sugar be sanded,\" \"the rum watered,\" \"the tobacco wet down,\" \"the\nteas mixed,\" \"the _small_ bottles filled,\" and the like; the tailor\nsells you more cloth than he knows will be required for your garments,\nand _cabbages_ the excess; the cabman who knows you are a stranger\ndemands quadruple fare; the innkeeper gives you the meanest room, and\ncharges you the price for the best; and so on through every business of\nlife.\n\nThe learned professions take the lead in this exhibition of roguery\nand immorality. The spectators never tire of these displays of the\ngeneral rascality. The roguish landlord, the villanous horse-dealer,\nthe artful, knavish servant, the Priest of Low Caste, and the Doctor,\nafford the most common diversion. The Lawyer is generally _diabolic_,\nthe Bonze a hypocrite and knave, the medical man an impostor and dealer\nin medicines of infallible healing power.\n\nMuch of this may be referred to the love of coarse humour--but its\nreal base is to be found in the _degradation of morals_. These\nrepresentations are _types_, and would only produce disgust, were not\nthe rascalities represented familiar. The excesses and exaggerations\nare of the Play--but the _types_ are normal and common.\n\nOne great trading place is called the _Stock Exchange_--another,\nperhaps more important, styled the _Merchants' Exchange_. These places\nare established in every large town, and the _business_ done in them\nabsorbs the attention of traders and people who have any property,\nthroughout the Kingdom.\n\nThe _dealings_ [Keet-sees] of the former relate to _Certificates_\nand _Bonds_. These are _Pieces of Printed and Coloured Paper_, which\nrepresent in the words and figures a sum of money invested in a trading\nconcern, or a sum of money which somebody owes and promises to pay. The\n_sum_ may be quite a fiction, and is usually either never to be really\npaid, or paid at some very remote day. However, a small sum is promised\nto be paid every six moons, or in twelve moons--this is for _not_\npaying the big sum.\n\nThe business of the latter relates to the buying and selling of every\nsort of merchandise, whether on land, or on vessels at sea.\n\nOther great trading places deal in money, or rather in bits of _Printed\nPaper_, which promise to pay money to him who has one of these _bits_.\nThese places get people to sell them these bits at a price, and\nthen resell at a greater price--or they _borrow_ and _lend_ these\nbits, paying less for the use than they obtain. Very little money is\nseen--business is in Paper--another of the ingenious _tricks_ of these\ntrading and gambling Barbarians, perhaps the source of more dishonesty\nand cheating than almost any other. As the like has no existence in our\nFlowery Land, it will not easily be comprehended.\n\nThe chief of these places for dealing in this money-paper is called the\n_Bank_. The Government shares in the advantages of this invention. Its\nobject is to _bank up_, or hoard, all the real money (gold and silver)\nwhich it can get in exchange for the bits of paper. These promise that\nthe Bank will always return the sum of gold which the bit acknowledges\nto have been received. The man hands the Bank his gold-money to be\nkept safely till he wishes for it, and the Bank gives him the _bit_ of\nPaper (which is numbered and recorded in a book). He can carry this in\nhis pocket, but the gold-money would be too burdensome and more easily\nlost. The Government pledges also that the gold shall always be safely\nkept, to be returned whenever the bits of paper are returned. This\nBank-house is immensely strong and large, built of hewn stone, and is\nguarded by men armed with swords and fire-arms for fear of the savage\nand ignorant Low-Castes.\n\nOrdinarily, only now and again, a few persons go to the Bank and\nwish the gold; because if one wishes it, some one of whom he buys,\nor to whom he owes, will take the money-paper and hand him the\ndifference--consequently, the paper goes from hand to hand for a long\ntime. Everybody takes it because it is convenient, and because he\nthinks the gold attached to it is safe in the Government Bank-house.\nThe confidence in _Paper_ is called CREDIT. To which I shall more fully\nrefer.\n\nSometimes, when a great many demand the gold, it is suddenly found\nthat the Bank-house has it not! The promise of _banking up_ the gold\ntill wanted in exchange for the Paper _has been broken_. Down goes\n_Credit_--every kind of value shrinks at once; for the Bank has _not_\nthe real money, and values have been measured by the paper!\n\nThe traders and everybody connected with them have incurred debts--that\nis, made paper promises to pay, like those of the Bank, for property\n_valued on_ the Bank-paper. It is found that this Bank-paper is too\nmuch by one-half--the property has been over-valued in proportion.\nStill the debtors are required to pay the amount of _their_ paper\npromises!\n\nIt is impossible--ruin and _Bankruptcy_ ensue--the whole trading world\nis convulsed, and tens of thousands are beggared!\n\nThe explanation is that the Bank is allowed by the Government (in\nconsideration of certain advantages to itself) to lend out the gold\nfor usury--that is, it lends a thousand pounds of gold to be returned\nin three moons, for which use the borrower pays twelve or twenty\npounds! It makes its gains by thus using the gold which it has promised\nsafely to keep. It is permitted to do this, because the risk of having\n_much_ gold demanded at once is small, and from experience the Bank has\ndiscovered that if one-third part of its paper-promises of gold is in\nhand, it will be in little risk of having more demanded! Backed by the\nGovernment, it deliberately, for the sake of gain, runs the risk of\nbeing a cheat and robber!\n\nThen follows a curious contrivance of these dishonest Barbarians. To\nsave its own moneys and advantages in the Bank, and to save loss or\nruin to the owners of the establishment, who are very powerful and\nnumerous, composed of members of the High Castes as well as others--in\nfact, to save the general wreck of the _sham_ paper-money (_Credit_)\nupon which values are falsely based, the Government issues a Law,\nforcing everybody to receive from the Bank its paper precisely as if it\nwere gold!\n\nThus, having assisted in one fraud, it resorts to another, to remedy\nin some measure the evils of the first--extending and perpetuating the\nevil, which a wise man would remove!\n\nAnother remarkable thing is the organised _Betting_. The Houses where\nthis is done are splendid, and the many people supported in them and by\nthe gains, live luxuriously, and are greatly respected. The gains are,\nin small measure, also shared by those who put in money from which bets\nmay be paid, when the House loses the bet.\n\nThe betting may be about anything. But the chief Houses are those\nwhere the bets have reference to length of life or injuries, to loss by\nfire, to loss by sea, and losses by fraud. If a man wish to bet that\nhe will live say seventy moons, he pays down at once a small sum, and\nthe House accepts the bet--that is, gives him a _writing, promising_\nto pay his heirs a very much larger sum if he die before the seventy\nmoons expire. If a man have goods in a _shop_, he bets, say, one pound\nto 100 pounds, that they will not be burned during twelve moons--he\npays down the pound and receives a writing (as before) that if the\ngoods be burned during the time, he shall be paid the 100 pounds. So\non, as to bets upon goods and upon vessels on the seas, upon buildings\nof all kinds, upon duration of life, and upon the life of another,\nupon accidents to body, upon honesty of servants--upon almost anything\nwhere the thing bet by the Houses is remote in time. This is the great\npoint; for these never pay anything down by way of _stakes_, but always\nreceive in money the _stake_ (bet) of the other party.\n\nOne may readily see how corrupting all this is in its nature, and how\nfalsely conceived. The rascally trader burns the goods, the possessor\nof a building burns that, the owner of a ship has her wrecked, to\nget the sums promised upon these events; and trade is promoted upon\nunsound practices. Even life has been taken by a wretched gambler,\nwho has staked money upon the life of another. The _tendency_ is to\nthese crimes. Nor can there be anything but _loss to the public at\nlarge_; for these expensive Houses and their numerous and richly-living\ninhabitants are supported by the winnings made, without rendering any\nuseful service. This must be true, even when all bets made by these\nHouses are _paid_. But another great mischief follows: they do not\npay, and are often only _Swindles_ [Kea-ties] on a great scale! There\nare those which pay--that is, have so far paid--but as there are bets\nfor enormous amounts far in _the future_, no one can say that final\npayments are certain. The great object of all the Houses is to secure\nas large sums in cash as possible upon events a long way off. The\nmore remote the event upon which the bet is laid, the larger the sum\ndemanded from the individual who bets. _He_ pays--the House merely\npromises to pay, and cannot be called upon to pay for a very long time!\nIn this way, great sums of money having been got (some bets having\nbeen promptly paid to obtain confidence), the House shuts its doors!\nThe rogues share the plunder and _decamp_. Decamp is to run away to\ndistant parts to escape arrest and punishment. This is, however, rarely\nnecessary; for such are the cunning contrivances of the Lawyers, who\norganise these Betting Houses, that very little risk is run--_forms_\nof law, slack enough at best, have been so well adhered to, that the\nrascals escape, though everybody knows that they have used those forms\nas a cover to more effectually defraud, and then as a shield to more\neffectually protect! These things are unknown in our _Central_ Kingdom,\nand are only possible to a demoralised people.\n\nThe _dealing_ at the Stock Exchange is mainly only another form of\nbetting. It is hard of comprehension, unless by the _Initiated_. It is\na distinct trade. Those who deal constitute a secret and exclusive\n_betting Ring_, or community. If by chance, when the doors are open,\na stranger inadvertently enters, he is greeted with caterwaulings,\nhowlings, \"Turn-him-outs,\" and the like. \"_Smash his hat!_\" some one\ncries; and suddenly the stiff head-covering is violently driven down,\ncompletely over the face and ears, tearing the skin off the nose,\nand reducing the thoughtless and astonished stranger to a state of\nridiculous helplessness!\n\nBetting is a passion with the English Barbarians. The women, the\nchildren, the servants--everybody bets about any and every thing. Horse\nraces, boat races, swimming races, all sorts of games and sports,\nattended by both sexes, afford endless occasions for the indulgence of\nit. Yet, after all, extensive, ruinous, and debasing as are the evils\nof it in these sports and games, the mischief is vastly greater in the\nMarts of traffic--in the Stock and Merchants' Exchanges.\n\nIn these, the dealings are, as I have said, either as to pieces of\npaper representing values, or as to merchandise in hand or at sea; and,\nI may add, as to _pieces of paper_, representing this merchandise,\ncalled Warrants and Bills of Lading.\n\nThe betting in the Stock Exchange concerns itself with the Paper of the\nformer class, and the betting of the Merchants' Exchange with the Paper\nof the second kind. All this grows directly out of the Bank paper and\nthe _Credit system_, before mentioned.\n\nAll values are founded upon these nominal promises to pay. But the\npromises themselves are ever undergoing changes, according to the\nvarying circumstances. The promise _to-day_ looks well--it is\nestimated at so much; _to-morrow_ it does not look so well--and it is\nestimated at less worth. Besides, all the gold and silver in the world\ncould not pay a twentieth part of these promises. Thus the fluctuations\nare incessant. The betting at the Stock Exchange has reference to\n_these_ fluctuations. One of the _betters_ is interested to have a\nrise, another to have a fall, of value. One agrees to deliver at a\nfuture day, at a certain price; all are interested to bring about a\nchange either one way or another. The man who desires a rise may not\nbe scrupulous as to any means which may produce the rise; and he who\nwishes a fall of price will eagerly second anything which will have\nthat effect. Consider the consequences upon the honesty and good faith\nof those who engage in this betting!\n\nThe Merchants' Exchange is not so devoted to absolute betting; yet\nits largest business partakes of that vice. One buys a cargo at sea;\nanother agrees to deliver a cargo three months hence. One sells what\nhe has not, for a future delivery. Another buys what he never intends\nto receive, deliverable to him in the future. No money is paid, nor\nreceived. The buyers and sellers are merely gambling--betting (as\nin the Stock Exchange) upon the _rise or fall_ of prices! And are\ninterested--the one to advance the price, and the other to lower the\nprice, of the thing dealt in!\n\nConsider the temptation to unfair practices, the inevitable tricks,\nfalse rumours, lies, and deviations from honourable conduct involved\nin such transactions! Reflect upon the consequences to the honest\ntrader, who is, in his very honesty, all the more easily tricked by\nthe unscrupulous!\n\nThe stronghold of these various gambling Establishments, and the grand\nfeature, in fact, of the English business life, is CREDIT--to which I\nwill devote some space. We have nothing like it, nor had the ancient\nbarbarians of the West. It is, perhaps, the most distinguishing thing\nin the Barbarian life.\n\nAs already hinted, Credit means that a Promise shall stand for\nperformance.\n\nIt had its rise among the Barbarian tribes, not very long since, and\ngrew out of their incessant wars. Particularly the English, finding\nthey could not pay the armed bands, contrived to get the gold out of\nthe hands of the people in exchange for the Bank-paper, and then,\nforcing the people to still accept the paper for gold, issued paper\nto such an amount as Government needed! From that period the people,\nespecially the trading classes, making directly or indirectly nearly\nthe whole, found an advantage in resorting to the same fiction--and the\nGovernment could do no other than give to the trader, who could not pay\n_his_ promise, the same relief which it took for itself--for the Bank.\nIt allowed him to pay what he could, and go on as before! No matter\nthat he paid only one-third part--unless he had been guilty of some\nextreme roguery, he received a discharge from all his promises, and\ncould begin to make new ones and go on in trade as before!\n\nIn this way, the Barbarian community is one wherein a false principle\ncorrupts all. Boldness, recklessness, cunning, to say nothing of\npositive criminality, are encouraged; honour, delicacy, simple\nintegrity, are driven into obscurity. Let him who would preserve his\nconscience smooth and clear, a mirror whence divinity be reflected,\nshun all the marts and ways of trade!\n\nThe Revenues of the Government are derived largely from the dealers in\nthe great _Marts_, and it is immediately interested in the upholding\nof the _Credit_ of the innumerable paper-promises of all kinds made by\nthese and by the Betting Houses. It is, in fact, the chief supporter of\nthe _whole sham_--it cannot be otherwise, for the English State rests\nupon it. The promises of the Government to pay gold can never be kept,\nand it forces an acceptance of a mere _fraction_, from time to time, as\na _sufficient_ redemption of its promises made generations ago!\n\nOther sums are derived from taxes upon the tea, sugar, and other things\nlargely consumed by the lower castes; whilst rich silks, laces, and\ncostly things used by the High-Castes are not taxed. But then the taxes\nare levied by the High-Castes!\n\nA great revenue is collected from the _excise_, a tax upon the beer,\ndrunk in enormous quantities by the lowest Caste. To stimulate the\nconsumption of this article and increase the revenue, _Beer-shops_ are\nto be seen on every hand, and the drinkers everywhere. Drunkenness,\nwretchedness, riot, disorder--these flourish as the _Beer-shops_\nincrease; these are the associates of those places! Yet in vain do\ngood Englishmen try to remove these _evil dens_. What are the efforts\nof these few in the midst of a general debasement--a debasement which\ntakes, without shame, a share in a traffic so vile!\n\nI have spoken freely of the dishonesty of the Barbarian trade and\nbusiness--a dishonesty to be expected when one broadly views the whole\nground of their Society. Still, natural equity and its _instinct_,\nespecially when the mind is more or less cultured, will always prevent\nabsolute dissolution--thieving and roguery will be restrained in\ntolerable bounds. A man of genuine integrity finds traffic no good\nmoralist in the best of circumstances. He needs the support of the\nState, or he will fight an unequal battle, and be forced by dishonesty\nto retire. The Barbarians are not yet sufficiently enlightened to\nraise the _measure_ of honesty. The Government and the people are\none in this. They do not perceive that the evils under which their\nindustry, their peaceful pursuits, and all their interests suffer, are\nthose inseparable from a bad superstition and false principles--these\nextend everywhere and into everything. Misleading in Statesmanship\n[Lan-ta-soa], in dealings with distant peoples, in due ordering and\neducating the people at home--stimulating wild speculation and extended\nconfidence (credit) at one time, only to be followed by disastrous\ncollapse, excessive distrust, and wretchedness, soon after! Giving, in\nfine, to Barbarian society that aspect of restlessness, that apparent\nbut often vicious activity, that indescribable hurry and confusion,\nthat unhealthy excitement, unknown to an orderly and industrious\npeople, whose order and industry are grounded upon the simple and\ndirect rules of reason and truth.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nSOME REMARKS UPON MARRIAGES, BIRTHS, AND BURIALS. [HI-DY].\n\n\nIn our Flowery Kingdom when a man marries _he_ pays to the parents or\nrelatives; but with the Barbarians the woman pays to the man. Women are\nsuch costly burdens that men demand some compensation for undertaking\nto keep them; and the relatives of women are glad to get them off their\nhands at any price.\n\nThere are in England four great Castes, which contain the whole\npopulation. The habits of the Castes differ, though you will observe\ncertain characteristic features common to all. In order to understand\nmore clearly the remarks which follow, it will be convenient to speak\nof the division of Castes.\n\nThe _first_--High-Caste. Those who do nothing useful and pass their\ntime in mere self-indulgence.\n\nThe _second_--High-second Caste. Those who do but very little, and come\nas nearly as possible to the selfish existence of the _first_.\n\nThe _third_--High-low. Those who are obliged to work more or less, but\nare ever longing to attain to the idle selfishness of those above them.\n\nThe _fourth_--Lowest Caste (Villeins). Labourers, not long since serfs,\nand still so in effect.\n\nThe _fourth_ Caste is so _low down_ as to be usually disregarded\naltogether, in any account of the people, though included in the count\ntaken of the population by Government. They may amount to nearly a\nhalf of the whole. They are rarely styled _people_ at all. They are\ndesignated by many contemptuous names, of which the more common are _my\nman_, _navvy_, _clown_, _clod-hopper_, _parish-poor_; _boor_, _rough_,\n_brute_, and _beast_ are frequent, especially when any of the despised\nCaste slouch too near, or happen to touch a Higher Caste.\n\nWhen a man of the higher orders thinks to take a wife, he sees to\nit that she will bring him money enough to compensate the cost. He\ndislikes to part with his easy freedom and yoke to himself a being as\nselfish, frivolous, and useless as himself.\n\n_He_ may be broken in fortune and notorious for immoralities, yet,\nconnected to the Aristocracy, he knows that he may demand a large sum\nif he will take for wife a woman a little lower in family than himself.\nShe must be of High-Caste, but not of the highest.\n\nThe woman's relatives say, \"Well, he is _fast_; but marriage will\nsettle him. His father, you know, is second son to the Earl of Nolands,\nand his mother was a sixth cousin to the Duke of Albania, who has royal\nblood in his veins. I think we may make a large allowance for such a\ndesirable match.\" It does not occur to the speaker, at the moment, that\nthe royal blood coursed through very impure channels in the case cited.\n\nIt is an object eagerly sought by low rich to buy for their daughters a\nHigh-Caste husband; and men of this kind, ruined by gambling, loaded\nwith debt, often degraded by vice, deliberately calculate upon this\nambition to repair their fortunes, and get comfortable establishments.\n\nThe marriage ceremonies do not differ very much from ours, in some\nthings; but it is very different before the ceremony. With us, the\nwoman is unknown to the man; but with the English, the man has every\nopportunity of seeing her, and knowing her very well indeed. Our\nnotions could not admit of this, but it has a convenience; it would\nprevent the disappointment occasionally arising, when, on opening the\ndoor of the _chair_, our new husband finds a very ugly duck instead\nof a fine bird, and hastily slams the door in the poor thing's face,\nand hurries her back to her relatives as a bad bargain! However, this\nadvantage to the English husband is not so great as it seems; for\nthe woman is too cunning to discover much till she has secured her\ngame. Unless, therefore, the man be a very cool and practised _lover_\n[mu-nse], he is likely to be rather astonished when he sees his\nbride--and he cannot slam the door against her!\n\nThe Bonzes, generally, perform the ceremony before the Idol in the\nTemple. It is deemed to be important to have the marriage _invocations_\npronounced. These are barbarous in the extreme; most indelicately\nalluding to those things which decorum hides, and calling the gods to\naid the conjugal embrace--no wonder that the bride wears a veil!\n\nThe great bells ring in the lofty towers, the loud music strikes up,\nand the marriage procession enters the Temple; and any one may follow\nwho pleases, so he be well dressed. In the great towns, the beggarly\nrabble--chiefly children and half-grown youths of both sexes, with old\nwomen and men--crowd about the Temple gates, but dare not enter. When\nthe _cort\u00e8ge_ leaves, this rabble clusters round the wheels of the\ncarriages, turning over and over upon hands and feet, standing on head\nand hands, rolling and crying out, in the dust or mud of the street,\nbegging for _pennies_ (a small English coin). When these are thrown\namongst them, they ridiculously scramble and tumble over each other,\nseeking amid the dirt for the coins, like so many carrion-birds upon\ngarbage.\n\nArrived at the home of the Bride, a great feast is eaten, with wine\nand strong drinks. All make merry; whether because it is so desirable\nto be rid of a female, or because of the liking which the Barbarians\nhave for eating and drink, I know not. The feasting over, all take\nleave of the new pair, the bride being addressed by the title of her\nhusband. The Bride is kissed, the husband shaken [qui-ke] by the right\nhand, and good wishes given. On leaving the portal for the carriage,\nold shoes [ko-blse] and handfuls of rice are thrown after them; the\nrabble roosting about the areas and railings rush _pell-mell_ after\nthe old shoes, begin their _tumblings_ about the street, and howl\nfor more pennies. The rice-throwing is no doubt Eastern in origin,\nand has an obvious meaning; the old shoes refer to something in the\n_Superstition_--probably to appease the _evil imps_, who delight in\nmischief and are amused by the absurd squabbles of the beggars.\n\nThe _Honey-moon_ begins at the moment when the pair enter the carriage\nand the old shoes are thrown after them. The horses start, and the\nnewly-married are whirled away into the deeps of an Unknown! You may,\nperhaps, catch a glimpse of the bride, wistfully stretching her neck\nand turning her eyes, dimned with tears, to the door-steps where stand\nthose with whom she has lived--and whom she now, it may be, suddenly\nfinds are very dear to her! But the husband has grasped the waist of\nhis new possession, and is absorbed in _that_. He has before been the\nowner of horses, dogs, and the like, which have worn his collar--_this_\nis another and very different bit of flesh and blood; none the less,\nhowever, branded as his own exclusive possession, and ever after to\nbear _his_ name! He understands so well the mere _fiction_ of this\nownership, that he is by no means sure that after all he have not\nmade a _bad bargain_--it may prove _too_ costly, and be by no means\neither useful or obedient! However, with his arm about his _wife_,\njust now he hardly realises these doubts, but feels, or tries to feel,\n_ecstatic_--as he ought.\n\nThe Honey-moon thus begun, ends exactly with one moon. It is a received\nopinion that the Incantations at the _rite_ exorcise the Evil One for\nthe period absolutely, though he may (as the Barbarians express it)\n\"play the very Devil\" with them afterwards!\n\nI was told that the Honey-moon was so called because, during the\nMoon, the new couple fed wholly on honey and drank weak tea! There is\nsome _mystery_ attached to it, for my questions were always answered\nwith a doubtful look. I had no opportunity of absolutely solving\nit--though my observation led me to judge that the honey diet did not\nagree with people--in truth, I wonder at its use. I have seen a bride\nafter her return, thin, pale, peevish, who had left round and rosy; a\nbridegroom before the moon _jolly_ [Qui-ky] and devoted to his bride,\nreturn taciturn, careless, forgetful to pick up a fan, or to place a\nchair for his wife, and even (on the sly) kick the very poodle which\nhe before-time caressed! and when the wife _pouting_ has said, \"_Out\nagain, George_,\" he has replied, lighting a cigar, \"_Yas, I must meet\nthe fellahs, you know_!\"\n\nThe best hint on this subject which I ever got was from a married\nEnglishmen, who to my query said, \"Ah-Chin, my dear fellah, call\nHoney-moon _Matrimonial Discovery_, and think about it, ha!\"\n\nAs the honey-eating and tea-drinking are to go on, whilst the new\ncouple are quite retired by themselves, away from their friends and\nall usual pastimes and occupations, necessarily they have only _each\nother_ to look at with attention. The honey-eating is trying enough,\nand needs, one would think, all the relief of gaiety and occupation\npossible! But no, it is only to eat and to closely watch each other!\n\nI wonder no more at the changes which I observed. Nor do I wonder\nat the improved appearance of the couple when, after a few weeks\nof rational life in usual pursuits, something like the health and\ncheerfulness of old returned!\n\nYet I was informed that very many couples never recover from the\nHoney-moon (as my informant had it, Matrimonial Discovery), but from\nbad grew worse, soured and sickened entirely, could not, at length,\nendure each other, separated by consent, or sought the Divorce Court!\n\nThe thing, therefore, seems characteristic of the coarse humour of\nthe Barbarians, who appear to find a comedy in an absurd, irrational\ntrial of respect and affection, dangerously near the tragic at best,\nand often absolutely so! _Absurd and irrational after marriage_--one\ncan conjecture its use before! However, it is quite of a piece with\nthe general disorder, and want of knowledge and practice of sound\nprinciples.\n\nWhen a child is born, the event is duly announced in the public\n_Gazette_, and relatives send _compliments_. When the infant is\nabout eight days old, it is taken to a Temple to be baptised and\n_christened_. It is a singular _rite_, and one of the most astonishing\nin the Superstition. The Bonze who officiates before the Idol, takes\nthe little thing upon his arm and _sprinkles_ some water upon its\nface. At the moment he does this, he makes a curious Invocation to\nall the _three-gods-in-one_ of the Worship, and pronounces aloud the\n_Christian_ name of the babe, by which it shall ever after be known.\nThis is called _Christening_, that is, making a Christian of the\ninfant. The ceremony, it is believed, exorcises the Evil One, and makes\nit very difficult for him to get hold of the baptised (no matter how\ndiabolically he may act) in after life--the water, duly made _holy_\nby the Priest, is a barrier over which Satan, with all his wiles,\nshall find it well-nigh impossible ever to get--some Bonzes say it is\nabsolutely impossible!\n\nWomen, as soon as strong enough to attend the Temples, are _churched_\n(we have no term of the kind), a _rite_ much like an ordinary _thanks\noffering_, for the happy deliverance and new birth. The Bonze makes\n_Invocations_, and refers to the various superstitions and barbarous\npretensions of the Worship, devotion to which is inculcated under\nfearful penalties. However, on all occasions in the Temples, these\ndreadful intimations of Hell and the Devil are most frequent!\n\nWhen a death occurs, it is also announced in the public _Gazette_,\nwith honours and titles; and, if a High-Caste, with a long notice of\nthe chief events of his life, and loud praises of his valour, as where\nhe led, in his youth, a hand of fierce Barbarians like himself to\nthe plunder and burning of some distant tribe! His virtues are also\nproclaimed--to the astonishment of all who _knew_ him!\n\nThe tombs of the High-Castes are something like those of our\n_Literati_--though, instead of being in the country amid the pleasing\nscenes of Nature, they are generally in the _holy_ grounds of the\nTemples, and even within the Temples themselves--for the superstitious\nBarbarians think that, even _after death_, the body is safer from the\nDevil _there_ than elsewhere! But the common people lie hideously\nhuddled together, without distinguishing marks (or with so slight\nas to be quickly obliterated), and are soon totally neglected and\nforgotten--happy, indeed, if their despised dust may mingle with _holy_\nearth within the precincts of Temples.\n\nThe Bonzes pray and sing the usual invocations and prayers over the\nbody of the dead, before it is placed in the tomb--but there is no\nreal respect for the dead--it is not to be looked for in the rough,\nbarbaric nature. In our _Flowery Kingdom_ regard for the dead,\nrespect for their memory, tombs carefully preserved amid the quiet\ngroves of the country, tablets and busts set up in the _Halls of\nAncestors_--these are ordinary things. With the English, in general,\nthe dead is a hideous object turned over to the undertaker and his\nminions to be buried out of sight, as soon as decency allows! With\nus, the poorest will have the coffin ready, prepared, and carefully\nhonoured and cared for. With the English, the thought of one is\nrepulsive, and he looks upon it with loathing! No doubt the horrid\nsuperstition has much to do with this feeling.\n\nThe undertakers (a hateful crew) drape everything in black. They take\npossession of everything, and turn the whole house into a charnel.\nThey place the _defunct_ (as the Barbarians, with a kind of contempt,\ncall the dead) in a black vehicle, drawn by black horses, and draped\nwith black cloth--black feathers and scarfs, hideously flaunted, with\nmen clothed in black, attend--the dismal Hearse, with its wretched\naccompaniments, disappears--but only to disgorge the body. Soon after\nthese Vultures maybe seen returning, seated upon the Hearse, clustering\nthere, like carrion birds, who have gorged themselves! When they have\nfeasted and drunk at the House of Woe (woe, indeed, whilst deified by\nthem), and generally spent as much money as is possible--they, at last,\ndisappear--and the family breathe again!\n\nAn English Barbarian once told me that these creatures, in tricks of\nplunder and cheating, surpass the Lawyers; in truth, the fashion is to\nshow respect to the dead by a lavish expenditure in _black draperies_,\nand is almost wholly confined to that. It is an object to speak of the\n_cost_ as a measure of that respect! The whole thing being a _sham_,\nthough a most disagreeable one, the Undertaker sees well enough that he\nmight as well pocket a large sum as a small one. A certain sum is to be\nspent, _for respect_, not for any tangible thing. The Undertaker takes\ncare to furnish more _respect_ than anything more tangible--and to\ncharge for it! In fact, the mode of plunder is reduced to a system; and\nit just as well satisfies the real purpose--which is, to do all that is\ncustomary, and to submit to all the customary cheating.\n\nAfter the family have really got rid of the Undertaker, then comes the\nLawyer, with the Bonze, to read the _Will_ of the deceased. This is a\nnew departure (as the English call it) in the family voyage of life.\nThe Barbarian law is so erratic and confused, that no one knows what\nthe dead man may have ordered to be done with his _money_. His Land\ngoes probably to the eldest son, or nearest male relative; and, if it\nbe all the property, younger children may be left quite beggared. The\nWill begins with some absurd superstitious _formula_; and, prepared by\na Lawyer, is only intelligible to him. He, therefore, is present to\nread and to explain. For no one is supposed to comprehend its jargon\nbut the _initiated_. The Will is read, therefore, to those who only\nimperfectly catch its meaning; and when a _name_ is reached, the party\nlistens with an eager attention. He may be one who, by nearness of\nblood, or by the nature of his relations with the deceased, expects to\nreceive a handsome gift. When he, at length, from the mass of verbiage,\ndimly gathers only a _gold ring_ or a gold-headed _walking-stick_, and\nsees some one, scarcely heard of, carry off the goods long waited for,\nhe scarcely appreciates the _loving token of regard_ ostentatiously\nbestowed upon him! Nor is his smothered rage extinguished by the\nsatisfactory expression of other relatives, who whisper, \"Well, _he_\ncringed and fawned to little purpose after all!\"\n\nFrom this Reading of the Will begins a new era in the family. Quarrels\nthere may have been, but a common centre of influence and interest kept\nthe contestants in order. But now, nobody satisfied (or only those who\nexpected nothing, and _got it_), all are in a mood to attack any one,\nto charge somebody with meanness, with treachery. So bitter animosities\nspring up. Lawsuits, hatreds; families are severed; old friendships\nsundered; the lawyers stimulate the broils; and, at last, very likely\nthe Will and all the property covered by it get into Chancery! When\nI have said this, I have said quite clearly, even to the Barbarian\nmind, that _here_ all are equally wretched and equally impoverished,\nexcepting the Lawyers!\n\nThe power of the dead man, by a _Will_, to cut off a wife or a son with\na _shilling_ (as the Barbarians express it), is monstrous. Then the\nunjust law, by which the next of kin takes all the Lands of a deceased,\nworks endless misery. Think of younger brothers and younger sisters\nbeing forced to depend upon the _cold charity_ of the oldest, who, by\nmere accident of birth, takes every thing! And not only this, but\nsome distant _male_ relative may cut off the very means of subsistence\nfrom females very near, and throw them helpless, and too poor to buy\nhusbands, upon the world! A disgrace and shame too shocking for belief.\n\nThen, too, the wife's relatives may have paid to her husband the very\nmoney which, by the Will, is coolly handed to a stranger!\n\nSuch anomalies are unknown to the customs of any well-ordered and\ncivilised people.\n\nThe new Widow usually remains shut up in her house, inaccessible to all\nbut her children, her servants, her Bonze, and her Lawyer, for twelve\nmoons exactly. During this time she devotes herself to the prayers\nand invocations of the _rites_; and will not so much as look at a\nman, unless the exceptions named. She is wholly draped in black; her\nchildren, her servants, even her horses and dogs, are _in black_. She\nentirely quits all the _vanities_ of life; she only allows her maid to\n_smooth_ her hair. She suffers her hands and face to be washed, but\nnever paints her cheeks, nor tints her eyelashes. If she go abroad, it\nis to the Temple to pray, or to the tomb (in some cases) of the \"dear\ndeparted,\" covered from head to feet in thick black, followed by a tall\nfootman, all black, bearing the _Sacred Rites_. If a man come too near,\nhe is waved, with a solemn gesture of the hand, to remove away: this is\nthe special duty of the _flunkey_. If, by any chance, the widow in her\nmarch happen to lift her thick veil, and catch the eye of a man,--ah!\nhow dolorous must her prayers be!\n\nPrecisely at the stroke of time, when twelve moons have gone, the\nwidow drops all the _habiliments of woe_, and is herself again!--that\nis, a woman in search of a husband!--_if she_ have not, from clear,\nsheer desperation, and want of anything better to do, already pledged\nherself to her Priest or to her Lawyer. Now, free and at liberty to\nchoose, she may wish to look further; but it is probable that \"the\ninestimable services\" of the Lawyer, in her time of misery, hold her to\nrecompense; or that the Priest, attentive to the precept of the _Sacred\nWritings_ (which commands that _Widows shall be comforted_), has so\nwell obeyed, that the Widow, completely solaced by the _dear, good\nman_, gladly rests with him!\n\nThe great book of _Rites and Customs_ regulating the conduct of widows,\nof widowers--in fact, the observances of _Society_ generally--I have\nnever been able to see. It is in the care and under the constant\nsupervision of a High-Caste of exalted state, from whose authority\nthere is no appeal, styled _Missus Grundy_. I think a stranger can in\nno case be allowed to see this Illustrious, nor the Book. Indeed, I was\ntold that no one, not even Royalty itself, could inspect the Book, nor\nchallenge this authority. It is hereditary in the mighty Grundy family;\nand the head of the House is believed to be infallible in social\nobservances. Another remarkable thing is, there is never a failure in\nthe succession--a Grundy is always on hand!\n\nNow, _Missus Grundy_ speaks with more tolerance as to Widowers: they\nare not absolutely liable to decapitation if they marry again in less\nthan twelve moons. Widowers, for reasons I do not know, are favourites\nwith the Barbarian females; and young women with money will give all\nthey possess to get a Widower, even when he have many children. It may\nbe because of the love for the \"_pretty dears_,\" as the young ones are\ncalled; but, whatever the cause, the fact is certain. To gratify these\ngushing females, _Missus Grundy_ allows a Widower to marry in a less\ntime than twelve moons: it is so desirable that the _pretty dears_\nshould have the tender care of a new (step) mother!\n\nAs the Barbarians have no _Halls of Ancestors_, where the family\npreserve with dutiful care the records of the virtuous dead--inscribed\non tablets of brass or polished stone--and where, arranged in due\norder, stand the marble busts of those more distinguished--they soon\nforget the dead.\n\nThe High-Castes sometimes set up monuments in public places; in Temples\nand the Temple-burial grounds; and inscribe thereon lofty panegyrics,\nas false in fact as they are bad in style--and no more thought is given\nto them. In truth, these monuments are always considered to be to the\nhonour of the _living_--who take the occasion to display their own\nwealth, characters, titles, or taste.\n\nThe Lower-Castes do but little more than hurry to the grave the\ndead body, and dismiss the \"unpleasant topic\" as quickly as\npossible--imitating as well as they are able the High-Caste, by setting\nup a _Stone-slab_, carved with a ruder but not truer description.\nCouplets in verse are often added; and, as giving an idea of the\nhumorous and coarse conceit of the Barbarian mind, I will insert some\nof these _Inscriptions_.\n\nOften the slabs are flat upon the ground, and the tombs ruinous\nand neglected; in fact, very generally the burial-places, though\n_holy_, are in a wretched condition--tombs fallen, stones and tablets\nprostrated, graves quite worn away by the careless feet of passers; the\nwhole place wearing a sad air of utter neglect and forgetfulness. One\ndiscovers a better culture making some progress, by curiously regarding\nthese stones, inscribed with memorials of the dead. They have slowly\nbecome less uncouth, less barbarous, and less devoted to the wildest\nvagaries of the _Superstition_. However, this observation is to be\ntaken in a very general sense.\n\nOften, in the country, I have stumbled upon a singularly-built old\nstone Temple--standing quite alone, with the tombs and the tablets of\nthe dead, clustering beneath the shadow of the lofty, square tower of\nhewn stone. Upon the hill-side, with a lovely view of hills, and soft\nvales, and rich fields of ripening corn, and scattered groves--with\ngreen meadows divided by flowering shrubs, where the flocks and the\ncattle fed. Near by, orchards, white and pink in blossoms; and all the\nair fragrant with a delicate perfume. At my feet, a few houses nestling\namong lofty elms--far away to the West, the sun shining above with\nslanting rays across a wide expanse of beauty--sitting upon a stone\nbench, beneath the ivy-covered Temple-porch, I have looked upwards to\nthe serene sky, and outwards upon the tranquil and lovely scene; and\nI have known no Barbarian rudeness, felt no Barbarian Idolatry. The\nsolemn Temple, eloquent in silence, the unbroken rest of the dead,\nthe calm and delightful presence of Nature, these were here, these\nare there; man unites his grateful worship across the wide world--the\nSovereign Lord _is_ worshipped, though darkly, by these Barbarians! And\nin this worship (in time to be purified) we are one!\n\nBut I must give some specimens of Barbarian Inscriptions--by them\ncalled _Epitaphs_, when written to the dead--taken from tablets in\nplaces of burial.\n\n \"Here lies an old maid, Hannah Myers;\n She was rather cross, and not over pious;\n Who died at the age of threescore and ten,\n And gave to the grave what she denied to the men!\"\n\nAnother:--\n\n \"Poor Mary Baines has gone away,\n 'Er would if 'er could but a couldn't stay!\n 'Er 'ad two sore legs, and a baddish cough,\n But 'er legs it were as carried her off!\"\n\nHere is one which refers to certain mineral [zi-kli] waters, prized by\nthe Barbarians for curative properties:--\n\n \"Here I lies with my four darters,\n All from drinking 'em Cheltenham Waters;\n If we 'ad kept to them Epsom Salts,\n We wouldn't a laid in these 'ere waults.\"\n\nHere seems to be one, not uncommon, which covertly shows its disdain\nfor the gods of the _Superstition_:--\n\n \"Here lie I, Martin Elginbrod--\n Have mercy on my soul, Lord God!\n As I would on thine, were I Lord God,\n And you were Martin Elginbrod!\"\n\nThe following is most absurd:--\n\n \"Here lie I, as snug\n As a bug in a rug!\"\n\nAnd some equally _funny_ relative placed near, but not probably pleased\nwith him, adds:--\n\n \"And here lie I, more snug\n Than that t'other bug!\"\n\nA slang term for a low, brutal fellow.\n\nThe following turns upon the word lie [pha-li], and the word lie\n[pu-si]:--\n\n \"Lie long on him, good Earth--\n For he _lied_ long, God knows, on Thee!\"\n\nThis is ridiculous in manner of quoting from the _Sacred Writings_; and\nadding, without proper pause, the death of another person:--\n\n \"He swallowed up death in victory\n And also Jerusha Jones\n Aged sixty!\"\n\nHere follow references to the Superstitious horrors:--\n\n \"Whilst sinners [kri-mi] burn in hell,\n In paradise, with Thee, I dwell!\"\n\nAnother:--\n\n \"When the last trump doth sound,\n No more shall I be bound\n Within the earth;\n My soul shall soar above,\n To shout redeeming love,\n Which gave me heavenly birth!\"\n\nThis I fear will be scarcely intelligible. The _last trump_ refers to\na statement in the _Sacred Writings_, where it is said that a great\nTrumpet shall awake the dead, and so on. Probably, the remainder may be\nguessed by attentive readers of these _Observations_.\n\nThe next intimates that the couple had been quarrel-some, but had, at\nlast, silenced their bickerings in a common grave:\n\n \"Here lies Tom Bobbin,\n And his wife Mary--\n Cheek by jowl,\n And never weary--\n No wonder they so well agree:\n Tim wants no punch,\n And Moll no tea!\"\n\nThese refer to occupations. By a cook:--\n\n_To Memory of Mary Lettuce_:--\n\n \"If you want to please your pallet,\n Cut down a lettuce to make a salad.\"\n\nBy a sailor [ma-te-lo]:--\n\n \"Here lies Tom Bowline,\n His timbers stove in--\n Will never put to sea ag'in!\"\n\n \"Below lies Jonathan Saul,\n Spitalfields weaver--\n That's all!\"\n\nSpitalfields is a famous place for silk-weaving [tni-se-ti].\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nI need not make any criticism upon these things. They would be\nimpossible to our better culture and refinement. Our _Book of Rites_\nwould not suffer such low conceits to see the light if, by any chance,\nany one should indulge in them privately.\n\nIt may be said in fairness that these are specimens of the _low_, and\nwith _these_ there is less indecency than formerly. There are, however,\nabundant samples even among the Higher Castes, of things in really as\nbad taste, though in neater language--quite as _offensive_, but to the\nfeelings of right reason rather than to those of literary delicacy.\nThey refer to the _canons_ of the Idolatry, and seem, to a stranger to\nthat Presumption, quite incredible.\n\nHowever, one must reflect upon the effect of superstition, long\ningrained, and \"born and bred\" till its _enormities_ are as familiar\nas the most harmless images; and its blessings appropriated, and its\ncurses distributed, with an equal equanimity!\n\nI have not referred to the great Pageants when High-Castes are buried\nwho have been famous as Braves, either in distant forays with armed\nbands upon the Heathen, or among _Christian_ tribes of the Main Land.\nOr, perhaps, some high chief who has ordered the great _Fire-ships_ in\nburning and plundering beyond the Seas. I have not referred to these,\nbecause they _are_ merely shows, and do not in any sense apply any\nespecial characteristic. One thing I have remarked--there seems to\nbe no respect for the dead, they are immediately forgotten, and the\nvery _monuments_ ordered to be set up probably never appear; or after\nso long a period, that a new generation wonders who can be meant by\nthe _figure_ which rises in some public place! And when these _are_\nonce placed on their pedestals, neglect falls upon them in a mantle\nof indescribable filth. Even _royalty_ cannot have the royal robes of\nmarble so much as washed by the common street hydrant [phi-pi].\n\nIt is impossible not to feel that the cold and coarse feelings of the\nBarbarians are, in respect of the dead, rendered more repulsive by the\nhorrid features of the Idolatry. In this there is so much to brutalise\nand render callous, that it is only as _it_ is disregarded, that the\nnatural human feelings come into play, and tenderness and delicacy find\nexpression.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nOF ART, ARCHITECTURE, AND SOME WORDS ABOUT SCIENCE. [KRI-OTE].\n\n\nUntil recently the Barbarians had no proper style of Architecture,\nunless in Temples, Castles, and Ships. The dwellings, even in cities,\nwere as ugly and inconvenient as it is possible to conceive.\n\nWhen the great Roman civilisation disappeared, the barbarous tribes for\nmany ages so slowly improved, that the aspect of common life remained\nsavage. The Priests of the Superstition, however, saved some tincture\nof Roman learning, and brought from Rome some of the older knowledge.\nThese, however, directed their minds to the erection of Temples, and\nedifices designed for the objects of Priestcraft.\n\nThen arose those structures, truly wonderful, in stone, which exhibit\nso clearly the character of the gloomy Superstition: at first like\nthose of Rome, but in time added to and changed, till at length the\nvast Temples, truly gigantic, called _Gothic_, arose.\n\nThese are like huge _phantasms_ of carved stone, rising into the sky.\nHuge walls, buttresses, turrets, immense clusters of columns, vaulted\nand lofty arches, long aisles, lighted by strangely-tinted windows,\ncarved masses of stone in prodigious strength, leaping, flying\nupwards, upwards, in grand confusion, and yet upon a strange, wild\nplan!--giving expression to an imagination only known to these dark and\nstrong Barbarians. Externally, on all sides these Temples are monstrous\nidols in stone, stuck most curiously upon corners, high up in niches,\non turrets and battlemented [trit-ti-sy] walls, over the sculptured,\ngrand portals, everywhere--chiefly _diabolic_, exceeding all the dreams\nof a mad and dreadful frenzy, yet borrowed from the Superstition and\nillustrating it! Others surmounting these dreadful things, _angelic_\nand serene--as if, after all, the human instinct spurned all the low\nand horrible intimations of things too foul for expression, and yet so\nfrightfully _attempted_, in ghastly and grinning stone!\n\nThe Roman-Greek types knew nothing of such--how clear and beautiful\nthese stood out, cheerful and _clean_, in the pure sky!\n\nAs art found this sort of expression in the structures devoted to the\nSuperstition, so in the buildings for the chiefs of tribes the same\nspirit directed, though modified by the object. In these art found\npleasure, and the barbaric mind delight, to pile up lofty Castles\nof huge stone--dark, menacing--where all was for strength and to\nsymbolise _Force_, and nothing for refinement, nor even comfort. These\ngreat structures are now, for the most part, crumbling away; not\nfrom change of barbaric spirit in the love of _Force_, but from the\nuselessness of the Gothic forms in the presence of big cannons. The\nRoman Architecture, somewhat altered, is generally revived in buildings\nof importance. Yet the Priests build much as before--dropping off,\nhowever, the more hideous of the grinning idols. In this unconsciously\ngiving a sign of the decay of the Idolatry itself. For when all its\n_horrors_ shall have disappeared, the morality and the simple worship\nof the Lord of Heaven may remain. The improving condition has improved\ndwellings, particularly of the Higher Castes. The poor still grovel in\nhuts and hovels, often too offensive for the healthy growth of anything\nbut pigs. Among the Low-Castes, in great towns, the filth and stench\nare quite insupportable.\n\nIn ships the English Barbarians pride themselves to be foremost. Upon\nthis subject we may fairly give an opinion. There are others quite\nequal, and those of the _Starry Flag_ often superior.\n\nAt present the style is changing, and from wood are becoming iron,\nwith such massive sides of thick steel, that no shot fired from any\ncannon shall be able to break through! So these English think to sail\nwith these huge iron machines into the waters of any people and force\nsubmission. For the mighty cannon, shooting out vast fiery balls of\nsteel, are expected to knock to pieces any Castles and utterly burn and\ndestroy any city. And sheltered in these impregnable, swift, floating\nfortresses of steel, these Barbarians expect absolutely to dominate\nover all the Seas, and to sink everything which dares to oppose. This\nsupremacy is already vaunted; and all the taxes which can be got from\nthe people, from the tea and beer which they drink, from the tobacco\nwhich they smoke, from the letters and papers which they write and use\nin affairs, and from a share of their daily toil, are devoted (after\nhanding a certain portion to the Queen and the High-Castes for their\npleasures) to these big, floating machines of war, to the huge cannons,\nand to arm and pay the sailors and soldiers, that this domination be\nabsolutely assured! Still, so far, none of these terrible vessels have\nproved of any use, as they can neither float nor fight; or, if they\nfloat, turn bottom upwards at a small breath of wind, and, if moved\nto act in concert, are so unmanageable as to be only terrible to each\nother! The sailors, therefore, dread them as unfit for the sea, and as\n_Iron Coffins_ to poor Jack, who is forced to go into them!\n\nThe introduction of _Steam_ has only rendered the Western Barbarians\nmore conceited and more miserable. On nothing do they pride themselves\nso much as upon the tremendous _Force_, which they have acquired in the\nvarious Arts, by the use of steam. They, in this, as in other similar\ninventions, mistake the nature of the thing used and its effect. They\nthink themselves _wiser_ because they move faster--as if the hare be\nnecessarily wittier than the ox; and more civilised, because more\npowerful--as if the rhinoceros were to be preferred to the horse.\n\nAt this moment, the Barbarian tribes of the West are devoting all\ntheir energies to this single notion of Supremacy. FORCE is absolutely\nthe most coveted thing--to be strong, the only desirable thing. And\nthe acme of that civilisation of which they boast, glitters only with\npolished steel, towering high, bristling with terrible weapons of\ndestruction!\n\nThere are canals not much used, and not commonly of good depth and\nwidth. The High-roads are nearly as good, in some parts, as those in\nour Flowery Land; but more frequently quite inferior, being either very\ndusty or muddy. They have none of the conveniences for the shelter or\nrest of travellers, provided everywhere by our Illustrious; nor are\nthe signal towers and fine shade trees, which give such beauty to our\nroads, to be seen, excepting occasionally, and quite by chance, the\nlatter.\n\nThe Bridges are insignificant, as a rule, owing to the littleness of\nthe rivers; but they are handsome and strong, built of stone, in the\nRoman style. They span the rivers, the canals, and form _viaducts_\n[pa-se-gyt] for roads of _Iron_. Upon these roads, passing sometimes\nover the dwellings and streets of towns, move rapidly the long chain\nof carriages, drawn by steam-engines, conveying many people and much\nmerchandise. These iron roads are numerous, and the works and buildings\nconnected with them very great and costly. The Barbarians greatly vaunt\nthe usefulness of these roads; but the rightfulness of their opinion\nis by no means apparent. They break up the quiet and the accustomed\nindustries of the people; excite agitations, produce restlessness and\nexpense, accumulate too many _here_, and depopulate and render meagre\n_there_. They crowd the cities with the poor, and leave the rural\ndistricts empty; the towns are overburdened and the fields untilled.\nThey foster the extravagances of the rich and add nothing to the\ncomfort of the common people. It is said that in the saving of time\nis a saving of money. But it is to be considered that this ease and\nrapidity of movement is not always usefully directed. It may be, and\nit is, largely used only to waste and dissipate money and time. It is\nsaid to save material measured in relation to effect. _This_ is not\nclear; for, although a _ton_ be moved far quicker to a given point,\nwho shall say that the ton moved by usual means would not, all things\nestimated, be as economically moved, and with as good result to the\ncommon weal?\n\nThe real question is not considered, which is--Have Iron-roads added to\nthe useful means of the people? Consider the cost, and say whether such\nvast expense in other mode or modes of outlay would not have produced\nmeans more beneficial.\n\nHow much more numerous and better roads, vehicles, buildings for\nthe poor, improved culture, tools, larger areas of recovered lands,\nnew fertilisers, new and numerous schools--innumerable details of\nimprovement--had the intellect, time and money directed to these\nroads been directed to the many needs of a people! The good, then, is\nrather the good which activity of brain and outlay of money naturally\neffect--possibly that activity and expense have not been most usefully\nemployed in Iron-roads--indeed, very probably _not_ to the good effect\nof a more naturally ordered expenditure. But the English, seeing the\n_effect_ of a prodigious activity and employment of money spread\nover many years, place it to the credit of a _thing_--STEAM; never\nconsidering at all whether the thing has been necessarily the cause,\nor only the accident. To what effect, during the same time, might that\nsame energy and money have been applied! The new power stimulated\nenergy, and possibly misled it. It may be said that steam did its\nservice by giving this stimulus. Probably not so. The question is,\nHas Steam after all _misled_--fallen short, in fact, of those effects\nwhich the usual and less novel forces would have produced? This is an\nunanswered question.\n\nIn the industrial arts the English are not remarkable. They are good in\nfire-arms and curious in weapons, as may be expected. They are expert\nin making barrels and vessels to hold liquors from wood; _need_, which\nthey call the mother of invention, made this art a necessity; such is\nthe prodigious quantity of _beer_ which they consume. In dress-fabrics,\nin tools, in furniture, in metals, they show no more skill than our\nartisans, and in many articles not so much. We have arts, useful and\nbeautiful, unknown to the Barbarians; they have things of mere show and\nluxury for which we have no use. In what is called _Fine Art_--that is\nPainting and Sculpture, particularly--we have but little to compare. By\n_Fine Art_ is meant what is impossible to us; it is for the most part\nintolerable to us.\n\nThink of the Illustrious of our Flowery Kingdom crowding into Halls,\nglittering with gilt and showy colours, to see there, arranged upon the\nwalls and standing upon marble tables, great pictures of women and of\nmen, often naked or nearly naked--wholly nude figures, mostly of women,\nin all attitudes, carved from marble, or made of a fine baked clay!\nNot only so; but the illustrious mothers, wives, daughters, and female\nfriends, accompanying the men to the spectacle! The young man and the\nyoung woman together gazing upon the nude and flesh-tinted voluptuous\nfemale, glowing in the picture! No; we give no such encouragement\nto fine Art! Yet our painters compare favourably with those of the\nBarbarians, in such proper use of the Art as is allowed by us.\n\nFor the same reason, as Sculpture with us is only permitted where\nuseful or innocent, it does not reach after such effects as with the\nBarbarians; where a naked figure of a young woman, done in marble to\nthe luxurious taste of a wealthy High-Caste, will command a great sum.\nNone the less, our Artists can execute with fidelity, as our _Ancestral\nHalls_ will show.\n\nCopying from the ancient Romans, in their most wanton and luxurious\nperiod, the kind of painting and sculpture referred to is most highly\nesteemed by the Christ-god worshippers! Many of the Roman works have\nbeen discovered, and serve as models; thus the _ancients_ are imitated\nin their vicious taste, though condemned as very children of the devil!\n\nWith the decay of the darker terrors of the Superstition, the mind,\nrebounding from _asceticism_, swung to the other extreme. A rational\nmorality and worship would have preserved a due medium. But with\nancient letters revived a love for ancient art; and the indecencies\nfrom that source were condoned to the excellency of the work--or\npretended to be. The Priests took no care to repress this outburst of\nvoluptuousness; in truth, moulded its nude forms to the embellishment\nof Temples; and, holding the warm fancies of its devotees, strengthened\ntheir influence by a new device. This zeal for the voluptuous in Art\nand reproduction of Roman types, began by the Roman Pope, spread\neverywhere. Thus the _Superstition_ itself sanctions this taste, which\nto us appears so unseemly and immoral.\n\nIn Parks and Gardens the English Barbarians are not surpassed. We\nhave no equals in horticulture; but in gardens the English are fine\nartists, and in parks have caught the true _instinct_ of Nature. When\nin these, I have felt conscious of a fine civilisation. The lovely\nparterres of blooming shrubs; the grand vases, rich in brilliant\ncolours of delightful flowers; roses, festooned, trailed in arches over\nsmooth walks; green spaces, where the sunlight lay warm and cheerful;\nnoble avenues of lofty trees; sweet arbours, embowered in blossoms\nand verdant vines; shady walks, meandering among the trees; groves\nof evergreens, musical with cascades, gleaming in marble basins; and\nfountains, ornamented and sculptured in shining stone. Little lakes,\nwhere the breezes awoke the sleepy waves and chased them to the shore,\nand where the aquatic birds of many forms delighted to sport! The whole\nplace eloquent and still in beauty! _Here_, no force, nor barbaric\nrudeness, nor worship of brutal strength, nor of hideous forms, nor of\nlighted altars! _Here_, the English Barbarian was a civilised man, and\nhere I could love him!\n\nAh, when shall he, so strong, see his _true_ strength, and know how\nto use it! Arm no more--teach the other Barbarians the proper use\nof Force! Dreaming no harm to others, fearing no harm to himself,\nand using the revenues of his great tribe to render it invincible in\nvirtue--how then invincible in all!\n\nOne day one of the High-Caste took me under his Illustrious protection,\nand conveyed me to his grand House, built of hewn stone in the ancient\nRoman method. It stood among fine trees, a long and glistening\n_fa\u00e7ade_ [phr-not] of white and ornamental marble. He presented me\nto his illustrious wife, who graciously saved me from the too great\nembarrassment of her presence; for, as I shall hereafter explain,\nthe custom of the Barbarians in this respect shocks all our notions.\nHanging upon the gilded walls were the costly works of painters--among\nthem naked women, coloured and tinted, in most voluptuous forms,\nsmiling down upon us--upon sculptured pedestals, stood white statues,\nin rich marbles, of exquisite maidens, nude, and attractive in every\ngraceful attitude and personal charm! All this was surprising, if not\npleasing--but when this Lord [Tchou] took me into the gardens and Park,\nthere, indeed, all was calm--the agitation of my spirit subsided!\n\nWalking with him, he took me by the arm, and said, \"Ah, my dear\n_Chin-le_, how little we know of each other; you do not understand\n_how_ many things can be with us, nor can we understand many of your\ncustoms; but _here_ we are not unlike--in _this_ art we meet on common\nground.\" I expressed my grateful sense of his goodness, assented to his\nhappy reference, and then ventured to observe, \"Your illustrious treats\nme like a relation--a brother.\" \"In what respect--I do not know.\" \"Ah,\nyou presented me to the exalted, the _lady_ [da-mtsi]--with us that\nis to say, _this is a son, or a brother_.\" He smiled. \"Well, perhaps\nyou are right. I rather think you are, in respect of women, though\nher Ladyship would not assent.\" I delicately hinted my embarrassment.\n\"The pictures, the ----.\" He laughed good-humouredly, and replied,\n\"Doubtless to eyes unused, such things look dazzling, and so on, but\nit is really only a matter of habit.\" But then, I suggested, \"Is not\nArt misdirected when so employed.\" \"Well, possibly; but an elegant\nthing, a beautiful thing--why not give an expression to that beauty\nwhich is the most interesting, the most charming?\" \"Does not _that_\nimply a purity above experience and above nature?\" \"I see; you lead\ninto an ethical maze--look there?\" I followed his hand, and the noble\nPark extended on all sides; yet, I said to myself, in our Flowery\nKingdom, if a point be _doubtful_ in morals we lean against the doubt.\nBut is there any doubt as to these _nudities_? However, turning with\nadmiration to the well-trained flowers, the spreading lawns of soft\nverdure, the beautiful vases of brilliant shrubs, the fine trees, with\nhere and there a modest statue, or a marble fountain, I exclaimed, \"How\nperfectly satisfactory and pleasing are these effects of an elevated\nArt, where nothing is suggested but what calms, cheers, refines, and\nmakes generous!\"\n\n\"Ah-Chin, my dear fellow, your enthusiasm is admirable; but we need\nmore than the serene, the cheerful, and the generous!\" As he said this\nhe smiled at my look of bewilderment--for I was puzzled. Since then\nI have understood better. Art among the Barbarians must be suited to\nthe restless eagerness of their nature, which demands excitement. And\nthe passions which ought to be severely repressed, Art, in a hundred\nways, finds itself best rewarded to covertly gratify. Thus, all the\nstrong emotions are most coveted, either as shown on the canvas or in\nthe marble. Male figures, nude, writhing, wrestling, and in attitudes\nof force, or expressing hate, or pain, or fierce contention, or,\nif in repose, lapsing into the languor of desire. Female figures,\nfor the most part, so managed as to stimulate those feelings, or to\nsuggest those incidents which a wise man likes to ignore; or in such\nmethods as to suggest emotions of shame, of terror, of suffering, or\nof crime--often debasing or evil in tendency, and rarely to any good\npurpose. Pictures of bloody fights, of burning cities, of great ships\nsinking, or _blowing up_ with all on board; of wretches tearing or\ncutting at each other, or struggling in blood and fury amid the waves.\nStatues distorted by agony, or paralysed by terror--in such, Barbarian\nArt greatly delights. In this, as in the sculpture of the Temples,\nshowing, in another form, its fierceness and love of strong excitement.\n\nIn the cities, there are occasionally statues to men who have been\nfamous; and, in some of the great Temples, Sculptures of High-Castes\nare sometimes set up. They are, as a rule, strange exhibitions. Many\nof the great pieces consist of a crowd of figures in marble--an\nastonishing jumble. There are figures blowing great horns; other\nimpossible ones representing huge human birds hovering about; chiefly,\nhowever, naked women, with wings awkwardly fastened behind the\nshoulders, transporting the dead; and others (again females) with\nrings of leaves held in their hands over the head of the dead or dying\nman! All this is done, or attempted to be done, in marble; and involved\nin it will be a great ship burning, or great guns being fired, and men\nand women being killed by hundreds; or other dreadful scenes wherein\nthe great man took fearful part! Memorials or huge paintings, in honour\nof persons famous in fight and plunder, are thus exhibited in the\nTemples and public Halls. They are, in general, very astonishing!\n\nIn the street corners are sometimes placed, on pedestals of huge\nstone, carved effigies of a King, or of a Queen, or of some High-Caste\nman. Of some Brave, who has cut off more heads than usual, or who\nhas seized more plunder, or carried fire and sword over the lands of\ndistant tribes. He is sometimes on horse-back; sometimes naked, with\nshield and sword, and very terrible; sometimes so far aloft, on top\nof a high stone column, that nothing can be descried but a _cocked\nhat_ and a pigmy figure under it. Rarely there may be a statue to some\nHigh-Caste, who has been distinguished for wringing more taxes from the\ncommon people, and, by this means, keeping large armed bands at work\nabroad--to the glory of the English name! more rarely a statue to the\nmemory of any one renowned for a life useful to mankind.\n\nAs works of Art, these things are not to be criticised. They are works\nof _money_--that is, paid for by weight; merely meant to compliment a\n_party_ or faction in the State, and not to honour, particularly, the\nsubject of the Work, or to give a noble expression of human genius or\nskill. No purpose, perhaps, in the sordid workman other than to pocket\nthe large sum for the big show! Nothing wherein a grand imagination,\ninspired by a fine enthusiasm and full of a noble conception, glows and\nbreathes in the stone, and makes it imperishable!\n\nWhether an unconscious _disgust_ leave these public statues and\nmonuments alone in their ugliness, I know not; but they are totally\nneglected, begrimed, covered with filth--often made the roosting-places\nof the unwashed street _Arabs_ (beggar boys) and _loafers_ [na-sthi].\nEven the statues of living Sovereigns are so totally forgotten and\ndeserted, that the nose of _Majesty_ may be a small pyramid of dirt,\nand the ermine robes more defiled and foul than the rags of the street\nmendicant!\n\nThe Western Barbarians are very fond of _Science_ [kno-tu-ze]--(this is\nthe nearest word in our language, though quite defective)--and consider\nthemselves in _this_ to be far superior to the ancients and to all the\npeoples beyond the great Seas. I have never been able to comprehend,\nnor do I think the Barbarians themselves comprehend very accurately,\nthe meaning of the word.\n\nThey will say of a man who is almost a fool, \"Ah! but he is very\nscientific.\" Of another, constantly blundering, and who has been famous\nfor prodigies of mistake, \"His science is astonishing.\" A builder of\na great ship, or of a great bridge, sees his ship upset or his bridge\nfall down; none the less, he demonstrates to his admiring countrymen\nthat, upon _scientific_ principles, the ship should have stood upright\nand the bridge been as stable as rock!\n\nA doctor kills his patient [vi-zton] scientifically; a dentist cracks\nthe jaw in extracting a tooth; a surgeon breaks the leg which he\ncannot set: _Science_ is satisfied--\"all was scientifically done!\" A\nman spends his life in looking at the stars; he is a man of wonderful\nscience. Another keeps a List of fair and rainy days during twelve\nmoons; his scientific attainments are respected and his _observations_\nrecorded, as if the fate of the harvests were involved.\n\nYou will hear of a man of marvellous science, before whom ordinary\nscientific men stand uncovered in silence; he has discovered a new kind\nof _tadpole_, and added another to the already interminable _terms_ of\nnatural Science.\n\nI have heard one of these learned _professors_ [pho-phe-sti] say\nwisely, \"He is a benefactor of the race who makes two blades of grass\nto grow where one grew before;\" \"but,\" he added, \"he is a greater who\nteaches mankind how to do this.\" In this way, wishing to show that an\n_idiot_ might chance to find a way to double his growth of grass, but\nwould be incapable of discovering the _cause_; so that, probably, the\naccident would die with the finder. A wise man would, at once, look for\nthe reason, and finding _that_, be able to secure the benefit for all\ntime. This knowledge of cause is the kind called _Science_.\n\nThe explanation is familiar to us. In our Flowery Kingdom, the master\nteaches the rules, and the artificer puts them in practice. We call\nhim an Artisan who has knowledge of an Art: we call him who knows\nhow things ought to be done, and who examines into things so as to\ncomprehend the best modes of doing, simply a teacher, or master. We do\nnot see that his knowledge, without actual performance, makes him a\ngreat man--a man of Science (as the Barbarians have it). Indeed, if a\nman do a thing merely mechanically, as a horse turns a mill, no doubt\nhe is an ignorant artisan. Still, this stupidity does not exalt, in\nany degree, the nature of the knowledge of a brighter man: this one is\nonly an intelligent artisan. On the whole, then, it seemed to me that\nthe Barbarians, for the most part very ignorant, were easily imposed\nupon by those who, having leisure, mastered the multiform _terms_ (or\nsome of them) used by the teachers of Natural History in its various\ndepartments. These, too, idle and with some ambition to be known,\neasily fancied that the dry knowledge of words _was_ knowledge; and\ndiscovering with surprise at first, but soon with great complacency,\nhow very little one need to know to be ranked with men of _Science_,\nat length prided themselves upon the very trivialities which otherwise\nwould have been unvalued. In fact, finally imposed upon themselves as\nthey imposed upon others, and really believed those trifles _to be_\nimportant, because confined to those who paraded them as Scientific.\nThese busy, idle triflers in words become _the men of Science_.\n\nThis is very laughable, and shows how mankind, everywhere, constantly\nrepeat the same follies. In our Illustrious annals men like these\nhave appeared and disappeared; founded schools, been admired, had\ndisciples, then passed into oblivion; their works, often voluminous,\nnever met with; or occasionally dug out of mouldy bins and reproduced\nin some parts to show up the pretensions of a _new_ charlatan--to show\nhow much better the same things were explained, or the same terms used\nby an old and forgotten author, 5,000 moons ago!\n\nThese men, as with us, constantly overrate the value of their\nlabours; the world really can get on without them. Getting together\nin _Congresses_ [Bed-la-mi], they pay (or affect) great respect to\neach other, and put on an _air_ of abstraction; they are supposed to\nbe pondering upon the care of men and things, and feel the weight of\nresponsibility. Other men may be trivial; but to those upon whom rests\nthe due ordering of Nature, Care should be a genius and Dignity a\npresence.\n\nIn these Meetings, nothing is worthy of debate unless it be\n_Scientific_. A plain paper, directed to a simple, useful object,\nand stating in ordinary and intelligible language the rules useful\nto the end, is not satisfactory. There should be something novel and\nobscure, or it is unlikely to come within the desired category. In\ntruth, high and mighty _principles_ on which man and the gods exist and\nmove and flourish, or upon a disregard of which decay and dissolution\nfollow--these are alone the proper objects of philosophers and men of\nScience; and involved in the profound investigation of _principles_,\nthe Congress disappears from the common eye, and is lost even to\nitself!\n\nOn the whole, the value of these scientific men to the world did not\nseem to me to be considerable. I mean as _scientific men_--without\nany of the pretension or cant [Bo-zhe] of their class, individuals\nmay be useful, and would be more useful without the false glamour of\nclass-vanity. A man of brain and who really thinks and examines, if he\nhave anything to say will say it, and it will be judged by its merit.\nBut when men having _time_ and not knowing what to do with themselves,\nand having some knowledge of words and but _little brains_, see an\n_opening for imbecility_, and are received and praised and dubbed\n_Scientific_, because they devote time and waste a large quantity of\npaper to give the world _their thoughts_--it is doubtful whether the\nmore harm or the more good be done. To be sure, the idle and empty\nman may be rendered supremely happy in his vanity, and may have been\nsaved from some personal degradation or vicious inclination--but the\nworld could have been well spared his _Catalogue of the Parasites_ on\nthe Lobster, or his _Notes on the Habits of the Barn Swallow_, or his\n_Suggestions_ as to the proper use of smoke, or his _Hints_ upon the\nhybernation of Eels. No great harm is done, for nobody reads these\nthings but the men of Science, who are obliged to keep up to the work\nof busy idleness, in reading for debate with each other and at the\n_Congress_.\n\nThis body professes to teach the proper rules for physical improvement,\nand its members are natural philosophers. They do not, however, confine\nthemselves to the investigation of natural phenomena--they range over\nthe whole broad field of speculation as well, demanding to know the\ncause of all things, and the very essence, object, and end. Those who\ntake upon themselves this wider inquiry, assume a dignity far above the\nmere _Scientists_--these deal with mere visible _forms_; but those with\nthe _laws_ which underlie the forms, and with the source of Law, its\norigin, its object, and its end! These are PHILOSOPHERS! and when a man\nis a man of Science _and_ a philosopher, then no more is possible to\nhuman exaltation!\n\nI have sufficiently referred to the _works_ of these in another place.\nThey cannot be wholly useless, if there really be a _brain_, honest\nand strong, at work. For to such patiently, humbly, earnestly, full\nof grateful recognition and conscious of the limitations of knowledge\nand of inquiry; seeking and looking out, with sad eyes, upon the vast\nworld; to such, some new evidence of the grand order, some new and\nbrilliant ray of divine illumination may come--_not_ to show _cause_\nnor purpose, but to delight and tranquillise, to give new assurance of\nthe Beneficent and Infinite Wisdom!\n\nThe English Barbarians have true men of Science. They are those to\nwhom the people are indebted for nearly all of the useful discoveries\nand inventions. Men, who, engaged in some pursuit, apply a patient\ninvestigation and thoughtful experiments to see if they cannot\n_improve_ the existing _means to ends_. In these investigations, they\ndiscover a new source or a new _way_ of power; and, in the experiments,\nnew applications and uses of it. When these men fall into the hands\nof the _Scientists_ and Philosophers, and, leaving their work-shops,\n_shine with the gods_, at the Congresses--they usually end in that\n_glamour_--their light is no longer an illumination!\n\nOf the musical Art, some things may be said. There is a wonderful\nvariety of instruments--not many at all like ours.\n\nSome of the stringed are similar to our _Che_. There is one, so\nenormous a structure, as to equal a house in size. It is made by a\nwonderful combination of hollow, metal pipes, ranging in size from a\nflute to a big cannon; and in height from a span to the lower mast of a\nship. Its sounds are many, single in melody, or astonishing in a wild,\nclanging harmony (the Barbarians think); but to me, discord. All the\ncombined noises are terrific; and surpass what the effect would be of\nour _Che_, _Yuhnien_, and _Pieu-king_ all sounding at once!\n\nIn Singing, the men often roar like bulls, and the women scream, making\nhideous contortions. A handsome woman does not like to sing.\n\nThere is a Theatre--play--where all the parts, men and women, are sung.\nThe passions of love, hate, jealousy, and so on, are sung and screamed\nat each other by the players in the most absurd manner. The woman will\nsing and shriek out the most astonishing _gymnasts_ of voice, the\nman shouting and bellowing back, and then both together bellow and\nscream; the woman, at last, falls into the arms of the man, or the man\nthrows himself in a passion at the feet of the woman--both singing and\nscreaming all the while--and the curtain drops! Then arise the noisy\nplaudits of the spectators--demanding a repetition!\n\nThe barbaric music is, for the most part, like themselves, rude and\nnoisy. There are some exceptions--and in simple melody often sweet and\ntender. The _flute_ and the _horn_ are pleasing--the former is much\nlike our _Cheng_.\n\nOccasionally, one or two thousand singers, and as many performers on\ninstruments come together, and give a grand _Musical Treat_. Judge what\nthis must be, when you add to this vast combination also the prodigious\n_House of Noise_ (called Organ)!\n\nOratory is an Art much admired among the Western tribes, and the\nEnglish think themselves to be pr\u00ebeminent. I can hardly judge; one\nneeds to be a perfect master of a tongue to follow a speaker as he\nought to be followed. Barbarous races commonly produce effective\nOrators; the imagination is vivid, the passions strong, and there is\nenough culture to make the forms of speech at least tolerable.\n\nIn the Law-making _Houses_ speeches (orations) are often delivered.\nFor the most part dull in manner, insignificant in thought, poor in\nillustration, very ineffective. The members go to sleep, or withdraw,\nor rudely interrupt--sometimes _coughing_ down the speaker. Very rarely\nare to be seen any flashes of eloquence, to be felt any thrill of its\npower. Unfortunately the same conceit, here as elsewhere, leads many to\nbelieve themselves to be Orators to whom the ability to speak properly\nis denied by nature. Yet these insist upon \"airing their eloquence\"\n(as it is styled) on every occasion possible. Generally these men have\nsome subject, nick-named by the other members as a Hobby, which must\nbe spoken to whether the House will hear or not. Then occurs one\nof those scenes so characteristic. The Hobby-man rises and tries to\nspeak. He waxes eloquent (at least, he intends to be) on his favourite\ntopic--perhaps the Pope at Rome; or the _rights of women_; or the\n_purification_ of mud-streams; or the poor man's _beer_; no matter\nwhat, when the other members determined to drown the speaker, break\nthrough all the rules of the House, the orders of the Head officer,\nand more, all the ordinary decencies, and _caterwaul_, and _cough_ and\n_howl_, till, from mere impossibility of hearing his own voice, the\npoor, _squelched_ orator sinks into his seat.\n\nNow, the House prides itself upon the _liberty_ of speech and of\ndebate; it is _one_ of the palladia of English Freedom; and this is\na forcible illustration _of the liberty_. Anything obnoxious to the\nmajority, or even to a noisy minority, may be silenced--such is the\nfreedom of debate!\n\nThe English Barbarians especially boast that the Great Council\n(Law-Houses) is not only the foremost of all national councils, whether\nancient or modern, in character and in wisdom, but also in dignity, and\nthe extreme care with which is guarded that most inestimable of all\n_Institutions_, the Sacred _liberty of Speech_!\n\nThere is a kind of oratory, sometimes contemptuously called\nPulpit-oratory by the English, which may be referred to, because it\nforms a considerable part of the literary entertainment. Once a week,\non the _Holy_ day, ten thousand speeches or more are uttered by the\nBonzes from a high place (called _Pulpit_) within the Temples. From\nthe place of delivery the name mentioned is given to this kind of\nspeech-making. The speech is known by one name--_Sermon_. These sermons\nform a part of the _rites_ in the Temples, and are therefore numberless\nand never ceasing. As ought to be expected, they are as dull as such\na formal thing must be. Some Bonze, new to his office, may attempt to\ngive a little life to the performance. But the High-Caste do not like\nto be disturbed by any novelties; they prefer comfortably to sleep in\nthe soft seats with high-backed supports, where their fathers have\nslept, Holy-day after Holy-day, for generations before them. They will\nnot have the Bonze, therefore, thunder the terrors of Jah in _their_\nears, nor affright _their_ wives and children by painting Hell and\nthe Devil. Eloquence, therefore, in the Temples, if it exist, must be\ncontent to glide softly over \"green pastures,\" murmuring drowsily with\n\"meandering streams.\"\n\nThe _lower-sects_ are not so disposed to neglect their duty. With these\nthe Bonze is expected to be \"instant, in season and out of season,\" in\nthe work of Jah. His _terrors_ and the awful Hell; the wiles of Satan;\nthe agony of the damned; the danger of neglecting repentance; the need\nof Salvation; the glorious Gospel; the blessedness of the redeemed; the\nworthlessness of good works; the absolute loss, here and hereafter,\n_of failing to Believe_; all these _canons_ are vomited forth from the\npulpit with an energy, and, sometimes, when directed to _unbelievers_,\nwith a vindictive ferocity, startling and overpowering. The hearers do\nnot sleep; even the boldest tremble, and the timid and weak sometimes\ngo into convulsions of fear.\n\nThere are itinerant Orators, who go about the country making speeches\n(and trying to make money) upon all sorts of subjects. They are\nrarely effective, though occasionally, when they happen to seize\nupon a popular fancy, or to stir up some popular feeling, they gain\na certain attention from the Lower-Castes. Whenever effective, it\nis by blending some of the strong points of the Idolatry with the\nprevailing agitation. If there be some matter concerning which the\npopulace presume to have any opinion, then the itinerant speaker has\nhis chance; and he is doubly influential if he mix in his discourse\na good proportion of matter taken from the _Sacred Writings_ and\nthe _Canons_--this he distributes, to damn opposers and to reward\nadherents, with a combined Priestly and Lay vivacity and force!\n\nWe have, and have always had, ample specimens of these self-elected\nteachers and speakers; and they receive with us, in general, about the\nsame neglectful consideration accorded to them by the Barbarians.\n\nOn a review, it must be admitted that the Western tribes are ingenious\nin domestic arts, and not wanting in invention. In the fine Arts they\nare sometimes effective, though immoral--merely imitating the ancient\nRoman-Greeks, whom they call _Masters_. Their architecture, when\nworth attention, is Roman. But they have produced one novelty, _the\nGothic_--a wonderful outgrowth of the Barbaric mind, formed by its\ngreat Superstition. In painting, when confined to natural scenery and\nobjects, they are sometimes very pleasing and correct. But in this\ndepartment, where they are not immoral, they are often repulsive,\nseeking for startling effects, caught from the strongest passions.\nTrue Art elevates, refines, and pleases. It never lends itself to\n_deformity_, to the bad passions, to baseness. And it cannot sully\n_itself_ by tampering with impure things. It recognises the twofold\nnature of man, and addresses itself to his _moral instinct_ and love of\ndivine beauty.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nOF AMUSEMENTS, GAMES, AND SPECTACLES.\n\n\nWhen the lowest-caste takes a _holiday_, decent people keep away from\nthe place of resort, as they would from pestilence. The coarseness,\nindecency, and uncleanliness are too revolting. Not that they really\ndiffer in the ways of enjoying themselves; but from their personal\nbrutishness.\n\nThe remarks following refer to those above them, and to the great body\nof the _people_, when at spectacles and public resorts.\n\nTo me, unaccustomed to it, the presence of women everywhere perplexed\nand surprised. In days of sports, eating, drinking beer, gin, and\nother drinks, romping of the sexes, and an incessant restlessness, are\nvery noticeable. In the open grounds, all kinds of sports and games\nare going on; women and men dance, whirl about upon seats, rush after\nand chase each other, swing in swings, all in a wild revelry! There\nwill be games where the woman is now pursued, and now the man; and now\nshouting, screaming, giggling, struggling and kissing, men and women\nrush after each other, catch each other; and then, reforming in ranks,\ngo through the same wild pranks again.\n\nThe chief out-door sports are horse-racing, boat-racing, hunting upon\nhorseback, bats and balls, foot-races, and the like. In-door: the\ntheatres, the dancing-halls, the circus, and a great variety of shows\nand spectacles. Women attend upon all, and take a part in all--or\nnearly all. In the theatre, the circus, the dances, and many other\nplaces and things, they take the most conspicuous parts.\n\nHorse-racing is esteemed as the greatest of all spectacles; and\nranks as worthy of a national support. The Highest-Castes--even the\nSovereign--attend. The Law-making Houses, the Great Officers of\nAdministration, and the High-Bonzes, leave the duties of their exalted\nrank, and postpone the making and ordering of the Laws, to attend the\n_Races_. The Illustrious wives, daughters, and female relatives--even\nroyalty--hasten to them, and esteem them as the best of all sports.\n\nEvery Caste--thieves, beggars, jugglers, the very _scum_ of the\ncities; _loafers_, vagrants--rich, poor; men, women, children--every\ndescription of person, rush or crawl to the _Races_. Every sort of\nvehicle, every mode of conveyance is used: on horseback, on foot;\nin any way, the enormous multitudes crowd to the _Races_--it is the\nEnglish Saturnalia (as an ancient Roman festival, noted for its\nlicentiousness, was called)--I have heard the word _punned_ [jo-akd]\n_Satan-ail'ye_, by jesters--meaning the _Devil is in it_. Not a bad\nnotion, having reference to the evil effects of the sport.\n\nOn both sides of the space where the horses are to run, immense\nnumbers of carriages of all descriptions, booths, stands and seats,\nare arranged, where the vast crowds stand, or sit, pushing, elbowing;\nwhilst the horses are _trotted_ out, and the _race_ is duly prepared.\nAt length, a great many horses, ridden by little men, looking like\nApes, rush off at a signal; spurred, whipped, urged by the riders into\nmadness, with eyes bloodshot, and nostrils distended, and every cord\nand muscle starting out and straining--whilst the multitudes of men and\nwomen stand up, shouting, leaping, screaming with excitement--sweep\nlike a whirlwind along the course, and pass the goal! And thousands\nof gold are lost and won! By as little as a head, or a neck, one of\nthe horses is declared to be winner! The name of the horse is sent\nall over the Barbarian world, and the _event_ is watched for by\nmillions--because bets are made, not only upon the ground, but in every\npart.\n\nI can hardly explain to the people of our Central Kingdom, the\nexcitement and the confusion of this scene. The most illustrious men\nand women are present; the great Bonzes are there--all classes, the\nlowest and highest, jumbled together, if not in contact, all carried\naway by the same wild passion. About the splendid equipages of the\nrich, mere human vermin crawl and fight for the crumbs and bones which\nfall, or are thrown from the feasting women and men, carousing in the\ncarriages. In these, beautiful women laugh and bet with the men, drink\nthe wines, and exchange a hundred smiles and jokes. Betting books are\nopened, and the women take bets and plunge into the vortex of the\nphrensy. The race is over, and thousands are impoverished, many utterly\nruined.\n\nWith us the Theatre is merely a public, out-door spectacle, of no\nimportance, amusing the ordinary crowd, and free from immorality. Women\ntake no part in the representations--boys, dressed as females, playing\nfor women. But with the Barbarians the Theatre is an organisation of\ngovernment, and receives the highest support. Women act, and are more\npopular with the spectators than the men.\n\nThe first in estimation is the _Opera_. In this representation, as I\nhave said in another place, the action goes on, all in _Singing_. To\nme nothing could be more ludicrous, more in defiance of all reason and\nnature. The most terrible emotions--fear, hate, envy, as well as the\ntender; love, affection, friendship--all sung, and not merely sung, but\nbellowed, screamed, shrieked, in every contortion of throat and mouth!\n\nIn the Tragic performance the fierceness of the Barbarians delights\nin dreadful murders, plots, assassinations; in things which tear and\nlacerate human feelings, and bring despair and death!\n\nThe Comic is as coarse in loose _buffoonery_ [Kro-sen-to-se] as the\ntragic is for an extreme of agony, based upon crime and baseness.\n\nBut the most astonishing of all the representations upon the Stage\nis the _Ballet_. I should not dare nor desire to refer to this, were\nit not to illustrate a point in the Barbarian character, only too\nprominent; and to give further cause to the people of our _Flowery\nLand_ to be thankful to the Sovereign Lord, that He has not permitted\nsuch mark of degeneracy to stain us.\n\nThe Ballet is supervised by a very High-Caste Lord. It is composed of\na band of young women, selected for beauty of form and of limb. They\nappear in public nearly naked, or so clothed in tightest hose [ki-i-e]\nand draped in thinnest diaphanous fabric, that what is concealed is\nhalf disclosed and more piquant than if left uncovered. Troops of\nthese appear--dazzling in white or pink--upon the stage-floor. Before\nthey show themselves to the public, however, they parade, one by one\n(as I was truly informed), before the High-Caste Supervisor of the\nBallet, who, with his assistants, duly examines the legs, arms, busts,\nand drapery, to see if all be in due order. The drapery is carefully\nmeasured to see if it be of the required length, and, if too short,\nmust be extended to the knees. Not to cover anything, but to satisfy\na pretence. For these transparent fabrics, aside from _that_ quality,\nare so contrived that they float off from the body and limbs with\nevery movement--and the motions studied are those which produce this\neffect--twirling around rapidly being a chief feat. When the High-Caste\nis satisfied that there be nothing to offend the most delicate, and\nthat all the demands of a pure _Christ-god_ morality are satisfied, he\nsends the young girls to the stage, and they appear in the _Ballet_.\n\nThis is a dance--why should I say more. But consider this dance is\nbefore the highest and best--in an immense and brilliantly lighted,\nlofty house. There are vast crowds, seated upon a level with, or just\nbelow the stage--in rows, one row above another, forming a grand\nhalf-circle, from the floor to the dome; so high, that the faces\ncannot be distinguished. Then the rich and glittering decorations; the\npaintings, the sculptures, the music!\n\nThe music of innumerable instruments strikes up. In come the troops\nof half-naked girls; their busts, their legs exposed. In they come,\nleaping, dancing, twirling, whirling, flying! They twirl around on\nthe toes like tops. They spin on a single toe, sticking out the other\nleg--and, in this attitude, revolve about! They retreat, advance,\nstoop, go backward, forward; twisting, twirling, throwing themselves,\ntheir arms, and particularly their legs, into all possible positions;\nwhirling about on one leg and extending the other, being the most\nadmired feat! This is (very faint) the _Ballet_!\n\nMothers, wives, husbands, daughters, sons, lovers, maidens, look upon\nthis spectacle--and pray for the benighted Heathen!\n\nEnglishmen often remarked to me, jocosely, \"Ah-Chin--no like the\nBallet--why, the Theatre nowadays _stands_ on Legs!\"\n\nIt is a fact that, in those times which the Barbarians call _dark_,\nwhen ignorance and brutality marked the whole aspect of common life,\nthe _instinct_ of decency prevented women from appearing on the Stage\nat all. It is quite a modern invention.\n\nThe Circus is another favourite show. In this, women appear, ride\nthe horses, fly in the air, walk upon ropes tightly drawn above the\nspectators, and form a main feature. They make the same study of\nexposing themselves, and are undressed like the women in the _Ballet_.\nThey give to the performance the same kind of stimulus, to which is\nadded the further excitement of danger. For in leaping, flying through\nthe air, vaulting, and walking upon the tight-rope high above the\nspectators; the probability of a broken back, or neck, gives a new\nsensation.\n\nIn the warm weather, the English Barbarians find great amusement in\ncrowding to the Sea. Here, little houses placed on wheels are trundled\ninto the waves. From these, women, men, and children wade, and plash\nand dive into the water. The women, and even children, often swim\nvery well--the men nearly all. The two sexes bathe quite near, or\ntogether, in full sight of the people on the shore. Here, on the\nsands, thousands are walking, sitting, and lounging about, amusing\nthemselves in the idlest sports. The men in the water are, with the\nexception of a mere loin-cloth, naked. The women, though tolerably\ncovered, yet so carelessly that, with the motions of the bath and\nwaves, they are sufficiently exposed! In these sea-bathing places you\nwill see Barbarian life in all its rudeness, and love of boisterous\nfun and frolic. The men, and women, and children, abandon themselves\nto eating, drinking, bathing in the sea-water; to sports and games; to\ndancing, sight-seeing, and _match-making_. The last is the pursuit of\nhusband-catching, which the free-and-easy life at the sea-side greatly\nfacilitates.\n\nBoat-races--sailing boats, and boats rowed or paddled--take place\nat these sea-side places, and are greatly admired. They are\nunobjectionable, and natural to a maritime tribe.\n\nA strange feature is to see women go fearlessly into boats, and,\nhustled with the men, enjoy the excitement of the wind and wave,\nto witness these races, or merely for the frolic--but women are\neverywhere!\n\nThe Cattle Shows are characteristic. Here, fat cattle, sheep, fat\nswine, fine horses, poultry, tools used in tillage, fruit and\nvegetables, are shown; and the best receive prizes. Only a few of the\nHigh-Castes attend these, and then merely as a form. The real support\ncomes from the farmers; and from the _Lower-Castes_. These crowd to\nthe show, paying at the doors, merely for frolic and fun. Open to late\nhours at night, with music, lights, and places for eating and drinking,\nthe mixed crowd of men and women delight in the hustling, crowding. The\nusual beer and other drinks are ready; the usual giggling of women,\nsurging, and elbowing, and pushing about! One wonders much, whether the\nfat animals are not more respectable than the animals which crowd about\nthem! But I can hardly fairly judge of the real _character_ of the\ncrowds, for they are too novel and too offensive to the habits of our\nFlowery Land. It is certain, however, that the Barbaric element always\nperverts the most useful things; and a Cattle Show must be debased and\nturned aside from its proper objects. What have the women and men, who\npush and surge about the brutes, of interest in the thing? Nothing.\nThey may know and care for sheep, when _roasted_, or for fat swine,\nwhen in the shape of a _rasher_ [fri-ie-tz].\n\nThe most curious, and, perhaps, most important of out-door scenes is\nthe _Hustings_. When there is a vacant place in the Lower-Law-House (of\nthe great Council), the Sovereign commands a new member to be chosen\nby those who have the right, in the town entitled to send. A sort of\nstage is put up in the market-place, and here those meet who are to\nbe _hustled_ for. Hustings comes from this word, and means _to shake\ntogether in confusion_. There are some who wish to send A., others\nwho wish to send B. Accordingly, these are seized by their struggling\nsupporters; each side endeavouring to put upon the stage _its_ man,\nand each trying to put off the man of the other side! One may judge\nof the _hustling_. Each candidate submits to every sort of indignity.\nThe _hustlers_ (voters, generally called) are chiefly of the Lower\n(not Lowest) Caste, and enjoy this privilege mightily. Beyond the\nimmediate actors are the associates of the two parties--not having a\nright to _hustle_; but, none the less, aiding in the general struggle,\nby pelting with rotten eggs, garbage, or other harmless (sometimes not\nharmless) nastiness [phu-fo], the man whom they dislike. Finally, one\nof the men is got upon the stage; entitled to be the new member for\nhaving had the larger number of _indignities_ put upon him, and come\nout a-top! These are--to have the head-covering driven violently down\nover the face--to be befouled with stinking eggs and garbage, and all\nthe time to say, \"_Free and independent voters_,\" accompanied by bows\nand grimaces, intended for _smiles_!\n\nIf the Lower-House, however, find on examination that some one has\nhustled twice--that is, thrown two missiles, then the scene must be\nr\u00ebenacted! For it is thought to be too dangerous to allow of this\nunfairness. If one could do this on the one side, then it would be\ndone on the other; and in the excitement, things harder than mud would\nbe thrown, to the danger of life! As to the outside throwers, the\npolice take care that they do not exceed mud, filth, rotten eggs, and\nvegetables!\n\nWhen the new member is chosen, he is called upon by his supporters\nto thank them in a speech. He rises to do this, and, bowing, says,\n\"I am powerless to express my grateful sense of the honour. _Free\nand independent voters_\"--at this moment a half-drunken supporter\nof the defeated man gives the signal. The rotten egg has fairly hit\nthe new member in the face; the crowd on the one side and on the\nother rush in _pell-mell_; the stage is broken down; stones, sticks,\nclubs, brickbats, are used and fly about freely; noses bleed; heads\nare cracked; oaths and yells arise! The new member, surrounded by\nhis supporters, finally conquers; and, placed in a chair, is lifted\nby strong arms to the shoulders of sturdy men, who bear him to his\nillustrious house, where his exalted wife and noble friends receive him\nwith delight. The tumultuous crowd are feasted by the Servants; and,\nfinally, yelling and shouting for _my Lord_--the new member--he appears\nat a lofty window above them, thanks them once more, and disappears.\nThe rabble leave the place, the gates are closed, and my lord and lady\ncan congratulate themselves and be congratulated that the _farce_ is\nover. Power and influence remain with them--_the indignities are all\nwashed off_--it is merely English humour.\n\nIn these Hustings the Illustrious wives and daughters, as well as all\nmale relatives, take part, and are obliged to take their share of the\n_indignities_. The dirty child of a low-caste (who happens to have a\nright to _hustle_) will be taken upon the silken lap of _my Lady_, and\nfeel boldly in my Lady's pocket for pennies; and the daughter of my\nLady sits down upon the stool and feeds the hungry _old hag_ of aged\npoverty. The old hag being ill, and mother to the _hustler_. In this\nway, and on these rather infrequent occasions, the bold Englishman of\nLow-Caste vindicates his manhood and shows his power in the State. But\nit is a mere form. The High-Castes understand the Barbaric temper, and\nconsider this mode of amusing it the cheapest and least inconvenient.\nThere is a struggle sometimes for the new membership between\nindividuals, but these are always of the High-Caste connection and\norder. Actual power does not exist in the hustling rabble--_that_ is in\nthe High-Caste. Nevertheless, sometimes the _Hustlers_ can determine\nwhich of two shall be sent; and, therefore, it is necessary, when more\nthan one desires to go, to submit to the _hustling_. Nearly all the\nworst _indignities_ are omitted when only one person is named. In this\ncase, all the hustlers being of a mind, they do not inflict more than\nthe _accustomed_ indignities, which are moderate in comparison; though\none would think sufficiently humiliating.\n\nIn the civic processions, which occur when a new magistrate is\nappointed to a city, one observes how the old barbaric features still\npredominate. Like children those things are most esteemed which grown\npeople disdain or laugh at. Rude force and the emblems of it; men\nabsurdly accoutred in old, fantastic arms and armour; banners which\nonce marshalled trained men to war; gilt and golden vehicles, conveying\npriests and officials; these carrying glittering baubles in their hand;\nloud music and bands of curiously dressed braves; these things delight\nthe multitude, which comes swarming out from every hole and corner\nof the city. Such crowds of both sexes, with children even in arms!\nNowhere out of these Barbaric and populous tribes can such a spectacle\nbe seen. The vast throngs rush and push about, and woe to that decent\nman who gets entangled among them! Often the selfish, reckless hordes,\nrushing through some street with a new purpose, overwhelm and crush\nevery moving thing in the way.\n\nWomen, children, strong men, are often thrown down, maimed; even killed\noutright! Thieves, beggars, the indescribable _scum_ of degraded\nhumanity, mixed with the crowd (in its own character but little removed\nfrom lowest debasement), give it an air of unspeakable disgust!\n\nOf these Civic Spectacles, _a Coronation_ is supreme. This only takes\nplace when a new Sovereign is crowned. No one is admitted to the actual\nCeremony but the highest of the High-Castes. The common people, who\nbear nearly all the taxes to pay for the enormous cost, must be content\nto get such glimpses of the passing pageant, as is possible to them, at\nthe risk of limb and of life. The whole thing is so guarded by armed\nbands, on horseback and on foot, with fire-arms ready, and swords\ndrawn, that it is only by rushing close to the horsemen, and pressing\nupon the foot-braves, that any glimpse can be got by the common\nmultitude; and for these mere glances--under the bellies of horses, or\nbetween their legs, or through some iron railings, or the like--the\ndevoted barbarians will risk their lives. Such is the admiration which\nthis great show attracts!\n\nIt is thus admired, not only because of the awfulness of the CROWN,\nbut also because the Idolatry plays so large a part in it. The new King\nis always crowned by a Highest Bonze, in his costly priestly robes, and\nanointed with _holy_ oil; whilst the _Sacred Writings_ and Incantations\nare duly read and uttered! The worship of Christ-Jah and the other\ngods, are all pledged, together with all the Canons and beliefs,\nincluding the Divine Revelation of the Jewish _Sacred Writings_; in\nfact, the ceremony, in the Priestly part, is Jew throughout!\n\nThe scene is characteristically barbaric. Force, and glittering\ndisplay; all the jewels, the gewgaws, the golden rods, orbs, bowls,\nsticks; the spears, swords, steel armour, helmets; the robes, furs,\nsilks, velvets; jewelled garters for the legs; ornamented chains in\ngold, for the neck; coronets, for the hereditary _nobles_ [Hi-fi];\ncassocks, gowns, mitres, staffs; scarlet and crimson cloths, cloaks,\nand waving plumes of the great braves; men in steel, on horseback--all\nthese things, and a thousand more! With the grand women, and the High\nLords! all are present. All is show and glitter; and childish! In the\nmidst, out there rides a man, all covered with steel armour, with a\nlong and flashing spear, who, sitting proudly on his horse, looks\ndefiance! A trumpet sounds; another dashes forward, and proclaims\nthe new Monarch; then the first, with a loud voice, defies to mortal\ncombat any one who dares to challenge the right of the proclaimed\nSovereign--and, thereupon, throws down a glove [kang]. If any one\nshould pick up the glove, it would imply an acceptance of the\nchallenge. No one takes up the glove. The trumpets sound, the music\nstrikes up in a hundred places; the vast multitude cry and shout,\n\"_Long live the renowned, the exalted, the Illustrious!_\"--and the\nnew-crowned man is King!\n\nIn this barbaric display, the money expended is enormous in amount.\nThe jewels and mere inanities are so costly that, put to proper use,\npoverty would scarcely exist. Nor is this all; the High-Caste get\nall the honours and emoluments, though they bear but a small part of\nthe expense. Many of this Caste hold _hereditary_ offices connected\nwith this Show, from which they derive revenue and high honour! One\nmay be hereditary _sword-bearer_, another _cup-bearer_, another\n_towel-holder_, another _bottle-washer_. Nor is this sort of sinecure\n(_name_ for frivolous, useless Service) confined to males; females\nmay be hereditary _folders of the Queen's night-cap_, _washers of the\nbaby-linen_, _keepers of the robes_, _maids of the bed-chamber_, and so\non! Still, such is the ignorance and debasement of the common people,\nand even of the better classes, that, although they pay for these\nexpensive whimsicalities and barbarisms, and never by any chance share\nin the personal benefits, _they admire them_; and believe them to be,\nin some mysterious way, connected with their _glorious constitution and\nprivileges_!\n\nI scarcely like to speak of the displays by the _braves_. These are\nthose on horseback, those on foot, those with horses, and cannons\nmounted on wheels; and some who march partly, and partly ride. Our\n_Flowery Kingdom_ knows these armed bands, and how rude and disorderly\nthey are. How they plunder and kill the defenceless, and burn and\ndestroy! How fierce they are, and how reckless of order, even to their\nown chiefs!\n\nBut I will refer to the main display of these armed bands. Once or\ntwice in twelve moons, all the bands being assembled, are divided into\ntwo parts. Each part has a great Chief at the head, with horsemen,\nfootmen, and those with the wheeled-cannon.\n\nOne of these Divisions is sent to a distance, and the other is kept at\nhand. Then the one near is commanded to act as if the distant force was\nan enemy, who, having landed, was marching into the country to subdue\nit. In this way, it is intended to teach the armed bands to march,\ncountermarch, hide, seek, advance, retreat, get into ambuscade, get\nout of it, rush up hills, rush down hills, cross rivers, make bridges,\nconstruct roads; _pretend_ to blow up and to construct earth-forts;\n_pretend_ to charge, to fire, to shoot, to rush with horses, to swiftly\nmove and fire the cannons, each against the other; to skirmish in\nsmall squads [kong], and fight in large bands--in fine, to carry on a\n_Military campaign_ (as the Barbarians term this prodigious nonsense).\nSome one said to me, \"A very _sham pain_.\" It seemed to me no sham to\nthe soldiers--so far as _toil_ is concerned.\n\nHow, in carrying out this tomfoolery [hen-di-ho-ty], bands of armed\nmen may be seen scattered over a wide range of country. Smoke of\nfire-arms and reports of the cannons may be seen and heard, in\ndifferent parts--and a quiet traveller may be surprised to see suddenly\na band of men, armed, rapidly approaching, with the bright steel\nglistening in the sun; and, levelling these steel-spears affixed to the\nfire-arms, see them rush, _pell-mell_, upon a row of bushes, firing\nand shouting--then, suddenly recoiling, rush back and hurry to shelter\nbehind some _other row_! Then cannon will bang, and smoke will rise\nfrom among trees near the place; and the horses will be seen advancing\nrapidly, dragging after them the cannon, which, being planted on a\nhill, fire and bang away; then, all at once, some great braves, with\nfeathers flying, and swords flashing, will rush directly upon the\ncannon, even right into the mouths!\n\nThen _pell-mell_ other horsemen, cutting and slashing with long swords,\nand firing off little fire-arms, will be seen; and soon long lines of\nfoot-braves will appear among the trees and bushes, and some will rush\nupon the others, and others rush upon them, firing and banging away,\nin a manner very surprising; and this is a _sham-fight_. Sometimes\nthe braves get so excited that they really do fight in good earnest.\nAs there is nothing but powder in the fire-arms, the danger is in\nthe swords and spears, which are sometimes so used in the heat and\nexcitement that many braves are really hurt.\n\nWhen all is over the head braves of the two forces make Reports of the\ndoings of their respective divisions, complimenting the braves and the\nhead men upon their discipline and order.\n\nOn one occasion the Royal Prince and his attendants rode directly upon\nthe mouths of a battery of cannon. Now the whole idea of the _Sham_\nis that everybody is to conduct himself precisely _as if_ the doings\nwere real. Any head-brave who forgets this is disorderly and liable to\npunishment. What would have been the fate of the Royal party had the\ncannon which they rode directly upon, been charged with balls as well\nas powder! It is not to be found, however, that the Great Brave in his\nReport referred to this extraordinary exploit of the Royal Prince.\n\nWith an enemy, real, deadly, strong, advancing into the country, then\nindeed the braves would have work which would stir all their wits and\nnerve all their strength. Marches in rain and mud; toilsome nights;\nwork in the ditches; cold and biting winds; wakeful and wearisome\nwatchings; all endured manfully, and hardly noticed _because it is\nreal_. Even a pauper disdains make-believe toil, and takes the pittance\ntendered for it as an insult. To the common man all this labour and\nexposure is very hard and very real--all the more so, because it is\nmere noise and smoke. No wonder that he is careless and indifferent; no\nwonder that he curses the nonsense which wearies him without giving him\nany satisfaction. Show him true, honest need; where the enemy of his\ntribe lurks, and he is alert, active; calls up all his intelligence,\nlooks to his arms, looks about him, and feels no fatigue. But this--he\nloses discipline, and is really demoralised by a _Sham_.\n\nStill the Barbarians greatly admire all this noise and blustering;\nand the Head-Braves fancy that the bands are improved in order and\nin knowledge of arms; that they would really understand how to meet\na genuine enemy more skilfully, by having _made-believe_ to fight a\nfriend. All human experience shows the opposite of this to be true;\nfor the _sham_ is certain to _entail_ some of its mischief and injure\nthe very qualities which it is supposed to improve. In the nature of\nthings this affair cannot be good. The object is a sham--everything,\ntherefore, about it is sham. The fight is a sham, and the fighter is a\nsham-brave, and, therefore, worthless. Who doubts that he is injured by\nthis pitiful work?\n\nWhen these armed bands march in the displays made on public occasions,\nthen, knowing that they are doing true work with a true object, they\nenter into it with spirit. Every man feels himself to be a part of a\nfine whole, and interests himself to do his best. These displays of the\nnumerous armed men, marching with banners, bright swords and spears,\nwith cannon, great troops of horses, long columns of glittering steel\nflashing in the sun, with brilliant coverings and gay colours, and\nthe loud clanging music--these attract great multitudes. Whilst the\nHigh-Caste Braves, on grand horses, clothed in bright armour and steel,\nprance about and order the bands of braves. All are quiet and orderly,\nand preserve due restraint. One would not know that these are the same\nturbulent, untrained, reckless, and cruel plunderers and murderers, who\ndevastate the homes of peaceful people beyond the seas.\n\nI did not see the big fire-ships, for it was not permitted to me. Or\nrather it would have been very uncomfortable indeed, for the rude and\ninsolent Barbarians in the ships know nothing of ordinary politeness\nand civility. They jeer my illustrious country and people, and mock at\nus with the brutality of conceited and barbaric ignorance. I was told\nthat the big ships perform a great many movements, firing off the great\ncannons, and moving about each other, and pretending to fight--in this\nway to teach the head officers and the men how to manage the vessels,\nand how to fire the enormous guns, and how to shoot the big balls and\nfire-bombs, and other horrible things, in the most destructive way.\nSometimes an old vessel is allowed to float on the waves, and the\nfire-ships shoot off the cannon balls against the hull, to see how soon\nthey can destroy, burn, or sink it. Sometimes they send against it a\ncurious machine filled with gun-powder, which, sinking under the old\nhull, suddenly blows up, raising the great mass entirely out of the\nsea, and utterly destroying it! So ingenious are these fierce tribes of\nthe West in all contrivances for the destruction of mankind!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nOF THE EMPLOYMENTS OF THE PEOPLE, AND ASPECTS OF DAILY LIFE.\n\n\nI have spoken quite at length of the English Barbarians as\n_traders_--these form a large portion of the whole. Below these are the\nlowest caste, workers, beggars, and thieves. The tillers of the land\nmake a great part of the workers; then those who toil in the mines,\nshops, and great factories; lastly, mere day-labourers of all sorts.\n\nThe tillers of land are wretchedly poor. In the years of their strength\nthey just keep from starvation, living in hovels hardly fit for a\nbrute, and not so good as the _Master's_ dog-kennel. When strength goes\nthey become idle, paupers, and die in the poor-house [do-zen-di].\n\nThe mine-workers delve in the dark bowels of the earth for coal, iron,\ncopper, tin, and other minerals. No beast works in more dirt, nor under\nmore brutal circumstances. Out of the light of day, far below, in\npitchy blackness, illumined only by the faint light of a lamp fastened\nto his head, the _serf_ toils--exposed to death from suffocation, by\nthe falling-in of earth, from great outbursts of water, from accidents\nof many kinds, and from the fearful _explosions_! He gets more\nmoney--but in the light of day, when he has cleansed himself from some\nof his weight of filth, the gin and beer shop give him the readiest and\nonly resource! The lives of these toilers and of their families are\nscarcely imaginable. An explosion sometimes destroys nearly a whole\nvillage!\n\nThe vast numbers, men, women, and children, who labour in shops and\nfactories of all kinds, present a very uniform appearance of misery\nand degradation. They swarm in the great towns, amid the _d\u00e9bris_\n[kon] of coal and iron works, and in the _purlieus_ of the places of\nlabour--dirty, noisome, barbarous. No High-Caste, unless by mistake,\never goes among them; and even the lower avoid them. Worked by their\ntask-masters all the day, from early morning till late at night, for\nsuch pittance as may keep them _at work_, what can be expected? Young\ngirls and lads work together; there is no decency (there hardly can\nbe), connections are formed, children come; but who is to care _for\nthem_? What can describe truly the actual state of things?\n\nWhen work is over, weary, without respect from others, and feeling\nnone, therefore, for themselves; no decent home, wife and children\ndraggled and wretched like themselves, where else to go but to the warm\nand brilliant-lighted drink-places? Here is warmth, shelter, comforting\ndrink. Is it surprising that these, _the only homes_, take nearly all\nearnings; and that the small remainder gives to the bare rooms, ragged\ngarments, and squalid wives and children, that aspect of misery and\nbrutishness? Whole quarters of towns are given up to this degradation.\nThe portals of Temples, the porticoes of grand edifices, the very steps\nof public charities, are crowded with these victims of ignorance\nand selfishness--a selfishness peculiar to the cold nature of these\nBarbarians, and which receives its finest and most exquisite polish\namong the High-Caste. I speak of the steps of Charity Halls, where\nrelief is supposed to be given to the starving; but on the very steps\nmisery may find its last, wretched repose.\n\nIt seems to be accepted as _inherent in the nature_ of things that this\nabounding debasement and wretchedness, wherein _crime_ breeds by an\ninexorable law, _must be_. The crime must be watched and kept within\nbounds, and guards must carefully repress the disorders of this foul\n_shame_, but the thing itself is inherent and ineradicable. It may be\nso to the barbaric nature.\n\nThe ordinary labourers of all descriptions, in the street, in the\nshipping-docks, in waiting upon the artificers, in the digging,\ntoiling, manual employments, differ not much from their _congeners_\n[re-la-tsi] in the factories and mines. Their habits are the same. All\nare alike really _serfs_, taking no notice of the refinements and the\nenjoyments of the higher-castes, and being everywhere rigidly avoided\nby them. On a sunny day, if you walk in a public garden, you will see\nsome of these miserable beings lying about on the grass, stretched\nout in the sun, asleep. By no chance will they occupy any place which\nis usually used by the upper castes, nor will any of these, by any\nchance (short of dire need), ever speak to or notice one of these low\ncreatures. Sometimes an open green space will present an appearance\nlike a battle-field after a combat. These _serfs_ scattered around,\nhere one or two perfectly still, there some just turning or raised\nupon elbow; sometimes an old crone resting upon a recumbent man; most,\nperfectly still and flat, give an aspect of dead and dying strewn over\nthe field. Occasionally men and women will be cuddled close together\nfor warmth; in truth, this grassy, sunny couch, is to them a luxury.\n\nThe aspect of these day-labourers as they lounge, or slouch [gr-utn]\nidly about the streets, is repulsive and curious. They seem unable\nto stand up. Whether from the nature of their toil, or from mere\nshiftlessness, I know not. But they never do stand erect, and slouch\nalong from one beer-shop corner to another, till they can _lean_ or\n_lie down_. They cluster about the corners by beer and gin shops,\nrarely molesting any one, but frequently noisy and quarrelsome among\nthemselves. They carry their strong passions and strong drink to their\nwretched haunts where crime and violence are rife. Women and children\nof this class are also at these drinking places, and give a feature to\nthe degradation of unusual repulsiveness. These beer and gin shops, in\nlow quarters of a town, are prolific of riot and crime, but abounding\neverywhere, in parts more decent, the police [ta-pki] are forced to\nbe more watchful. A striking illustration of the callousness of the\nHigh-Caste is, that they derive their own revenues largely from this\nvery degradation of the _serfs_--for an immense tax is paid by them\nupon the beer and gin which they consume--and this tax enures wholly to\nthe benefit of the High-Caste. In the Law-making _House_, therefore,\nwhenever some good man wishes to moderate this excessive evil of drink\nand drunkenness; pointing out how _Crime_ takes root and flourishes,\nand vice spreads from these drinking-places; how the whole community\nsuffers; he is laughed at and pointed at, and made odious to these\nmiserable creatures, as one who would deprive the _poor man_ of his\nBeer! In this connection of the serf with the rich man's revenue, it\nis convenient to say \"_the poor man_;\" on ordinary occasions, the\n\"_drunken beast_,\" or the \"_brute_,\" would be more likely.\n\nThere are parts of great towns where decent people never go unless by\nsheer need, and where in the night they would not go unless accompanied\nby a policeman. Nothing can describe the aspect of the dark courts and\nstreets, of the mean and filthy buildings, shops, and dens! Nastiness,\nfoul smells, dirty shambles and garbage; doors and windows smashed and\nstuffed with rags; gutters festering with impurities; and the human\nvermin swarming like maggots in rotten flesh! Upon _this_ foundation\nthe palaces of the rich and the vast stone Temples rest; one wonders\nthat they do not sink into it.\n\nIt is a great boast of the English Barbarians that \"a slave cannot\nbreathe in England.\" At first, when I heard this, I supposed that it\nmeant that he would die under the conditions of life awaiting him--he\nwould not be able to _breathe_--and therefore slaves were unable to\nlive in the land. But the boast merely means that it is not permitted\nto add _black_ slaves from abroad; they cannot live in England; nor\ndo I think they could. I do not comprehend the boast, unless on the\nground that it would be an expensive as well as useless cruelty to land\neven _blacks_, merely to have the trouble and cost of burying their\ncarcases.\n\nI have called these low-castes _Serfs_, disregarding the barbarian\n_fiction_ which calls them _free_. Not long since they were slaves\nunder precise law; now they are so by universal custom. When they were\nlegal _slaves_ they had some care and protection; there was _a tie_\nexisting between master and servant; hearty service and affectionate\nconcern rendered the relation not merely supportable, but positively\nadvantageous. The tie is severed; there is neither hearty service nor\naffectionate concern. The master possesses everything as before, but he\nis no longer _obliged_ to maintain his labourers. These are numerous;\nthey must work or starve. Whilst they _work_ they get enough perhaps\nto live; no longer able to work, mere pauper-life in poorhouses and\nthe pauper's grave await them. Nor do the masters even pay for these;\nthey have cunningly contrived to have the expense borne by all who have\nanything to be taxed. Thus the severance of the ancient tie has only\nenriched the High-Castes and freed them from all obligation to care for\nthe labourer, and sunk him into a condition of hopeless and debasing\npoverty. The freedom is all on the strong side; the _slavery_ more\nabject and less softened by humane sentiments.\n\nNow there are a few, who have some dim perceptions of these so obvious\nfeatures to a disinterested spectator. They see that it is a poor\ncompensation to the wretched misery which holds thousands hopelessly in\nits grasp, to point out an occasional accident of escape--where some\none, more gifted and more fortunate than his fellows, happens to rise\ninto comfort and slight esteem! These noble men, the harbingers of\nlight, who try to see and to act honestly, in spite of early prejudice\nand habit, perceive that there is no hope for these _serfs_, unless\nthey can be moved with a higher interest. They think they discover a\nchance to move them by offering them _knowledge_, without, or nearly\nwithout, cost. But it is doubtful if they be not too low, too brutal,\nto care for _knowing_ anything. Then, \"they must be forced to send the\nchildren, to be taught--_they must be whipped to School_.\" This is\nresented as an outrage on the _freedom_ of the serf--as an invasion of\nhis family rights--as a positive, additional, tax and burden. For he\ngets _something_ from the petty work, or from the begging or thieving\nof the children, and now the Master takes _that_! Yet, probably, this\nis one needful thing--to take the children into the hands of the State,\nin every case where the natural guardian is unfit to properly care for\nthem. But the State cannot _half_ take them. It cannot take anything\nof the present pittance, and claim to have compensated by giving words\ninstead. It is cruel to say to him who starves in body, \"Starve--I feed\nthe mind!\" A poor parent cannot receive even knowledge in exchange for\nbread. And it cannot be asked of him, in his low estate, to exchange\nthe little added support of the child's wage for the, to him, useless\nwords of knowledge. In the face of want one cares only for bread!\nTherefore, the State which teaches must also feed the poor--or see to\nit that the honest poor be first fed. If the parent can only feed by\nthe help of the child, the State must not arbitrarily assume to be\nMaster and Judge--saying, \"Come to school--and starve, if must be.\"\n\nThe High-Caste, secretly, clog and obstruct all attempts to raise\nthe low. Learning belongs to the master--ignorance to the serf. It\nis enough for _him_ to obey and work. There will always be poor, and\nvicious poor. It is better to merely watch and guard against an _Evil_,\nfor which there is no remedy. To give instruction to the low-orders,\nis to arm demagogues with a dangerous weapon. \"'A little knowledge is\na dangerous thing'--it only enables the multitude to see just what it\nsuits the purpose of the _Agitator_ to show! There is nothing but evil\nin these grand measures. All must be left to individual effort; and to\nthe Priests. These must work as comes in their way; instructing those\nwho wish, and encouraging those who dutifully obey, and attend to the\nlabours imposed upon them by divine Providence\" (Meaning, that _Jah_\nhas ordained, from all time, that some must be \"_Hewers of wood and\ndrawers of water_\"--a quotation from the _Sacred Writings_).\n\nIn this manner, the High-Caste, when it condescends to the subject at\nall, dismisses it. Indeed, this Caste, the Master-Caste, really feels\nno other concern in the low orders, but a concern for their peaceful\nsubjection. To this point they direct so much care, as to have always\ntrained bands of braves, and strong, picked, well-ordered men, called\n_Police, ready at hand_. So, in case the wretched, degraded, and\ndespised serfs and thieves, should dare to raise any stir, disturbing\nthe ease and enjoyment of the luxurious High-Caste, they may be shot\ndown without mercy!\n\nNecessarily, the elevation of the low-classes will be very gradual.\nMany of the Priests, wishing to enlarge and maintain the influence of\nthe _Superstition_, actively exert themselves among the honest and\nindustrious poor. And some of these Bonzes are as benevolent as the\ntraditions of their Caste and of their Idolatry will permit.\n\nIt is doubtful if the present condition of the masses of the English\nBarbarians be so manly and independent as ages ago--when they were\nsufficiently intelligent to move in their own cause, and were really of\nsome importance in the State. Unfortunately, they did remove from their\nnecks the pressure of immediate, personal service, only to accumulate\nupon them, _as a Class_, the whole weight of the landed and trading\ninterests. As a whole, therefore, they are more servile, more abject,\nand more dependent; and the few individuals who may raise themselves\nabove the level of their class cannot even flatter themselves in this\nto have gained. There never was a time when these individuals did not\nexist--it is not clear that their numbers have increased.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nOF THE HIGH CASTES: SOME PARTICULARS OF THEIR DOMESTIC AND SOCIAL\nCUSTOMS.\n\n\nIn this chapter I shall try to show some of the peculiarities of the\nopposite extreme of Barbarian life. From ignorant poverty, verging upon\ncrime, crime and vice; we are taken to luxury, also verging upon crime,\ncrime and vice--though under very different forms. The All-wise and\nSovereign Lord knows how to judge each class of offenders!\n\nThe High-Caste is very exclusive--it will not, if it can avoid it,\nnotice one of a lower order; and never will do so unless it has some\nselfish end in view. This cold-bloodedness characterizes all Castes.\nWhen the Barbarians, therefore, chance to meet, and being of near\nCastes, cannot be distinguished by dress, they never touch or address\neach other--but stare rudely up and down the person, to see if it will\nbe _safe_ to be civil, the one to the other.\n\nIn general, however, the two Higher-Castes present so many features in\ncommon, that a spectator may regard them as one. Both look upon all\nuseful occupation as shameful; and whilst it is hard to call up a blush\nfor anything mean, detection in any honest work covers with confusion!\n\nThe women of this Caste appear everywhere in public, with the same\nboldness as men. They dress in laces, silks, satins, velvets; richest\nfurs, feathers, shawls, and scarfs. Are so addicted to these things,\nand to costly jewels, and ornaments of gold, precious stones, and the\nlike, that a fortune is often carried upon and about a fine Lady.\n(_Lady_ is for the female like Lord for a male). In truth, a Lady only\nlives for two purposes--_to dress_, and _to marry_. I ought to add\nanother, but whether it be subordinate or chief I know not; in fact, I\nhardly know what it is. We have no very near word. It is a _something_\nof which you hear constantly--_to flirt_. To dress, it is necessary _to\nshop_ [keat-hi]. This, is to buy the innumerable articles which make\nup a fine Lady's wardrobe and personal appointments. Heaven and earth,\nand all the lands beyond the great seas, are ransacked to gratify the\ninsatiate demands of Barbarian High-Caste women. The finest paints for\nthe cheeks and eyelids, the most precious stones for the ears, the\nneck, the wrists, the fingers; the most delicate perfumes, the pure\ngold, the richest furs and feathers, spices, oils; the laces, scarfs,\nsilks, embroideries;--an endless variety. Shopping is, therefore, the\nserious occupation (subsidiary to husband-catching and _flirting_) of\nladies. Many ruin themselves, or their fathers, their husbands, or\nrelatives, in this expensive luxury of idle vanity. High-Caste women\nshow themselves in public, sometimes on foot, but, more generally,\nlolling, with poodles in lap, within open, grand carriages, drawn by\ngreat, high-stepping horses. (Poodles are nasty dogs). They attend the\nTemples, waited upon by _solemn_ servants, clothed in showy colours,\nand bearing ostentatiously the _Sacred_ books. They are conspicuous,\nwhen at the Temple, for audibly accompanying the Priest in the\nInvocations and Confessions: \"_miserable offenders_\" seeming to be a\nphrase rolled like a sweet morsel, and having a savour of repentance\nand humility, very edifying!\n\nThe men do not appear very numerously with the women--leaving them to\ndo as they please. The men going off to their own exclusive pleasures:\ngambling, betting, racing, boating, hunting, and other things equally\nuseful and improving.\n\nAll through the night, which is the time of High-Caste revelry, the\nstreets where the great live resound with the noise of the carriages,\nconstantly busy with the transporting of the High-Castes to and from\nthe Theatres, the Dances, the places of Amusements, the Dinners,\nthe Parties, Routs, and visits. To mark the difference of the Upper\nfrom the Lower, time itself is reversed; night is taken for life\nand sport, and the day for rest, gossip [Quen], and _shopping_. In\nnothing could the difference be more striking. The luxuriousness\nof mere self-indulgence, which takes no heed of the usual order of\nnature, and does not suspect that day has any better use! When in the\ncountry, there is the same round of busy nothings. Visits, feasting,\ndrinking--dancing, routs, and parties. Women taking the lead everywhere\nand in everything. Here, as in town, the business of life with women is\nto flirt, to marry, to dress--the last should be first.\n\nThe men add to the follies of women some things more robust, but not\nmore useful. Betting, horse-racing, riding over country with dogs,\npursuing timid creatures--or gambling, drinking, and feasting.\n\nWhen I first arrived in England, I was amazed, and supposed all women\nwere _shameless_ [ba-tsi] that I saw, whenever I went in public. In\nour Flowery Land this class [ba-tsi], under the strictest survey and\ncare of the magistrates, are barely tolerated, and forced to the most\nscrupulous decorum of dress and conduct. With us no modest woman of any\nrank ever appears in public. Therefore my surprise and astonishment\nmay be imagined. Afterwards these were moderated, and I could make\nallowances for the force of custom. None the less the custom is\nremarkable, and will receive attention elsewhere.\n\nThe mode of dress is simply wonderful. It is ever changing and ever\nindelicate and monstrous--especially for women. When I first saw one\nof these with a huge _hunch_ on the top of her back, I thought the\nperson was afflicted with an enormous _tumour_; but when I observed\nthe same thing on all hands, I saw my mistake. The great hunch was\nno more than a machine placed on top of the seat, under the outer\ngarments. The effect is something amazing. The women in walking also\nwear the robe drawn as tightly as possible back and over the hips, so\nas to display the whole form from head to foot in front, and also in\nrear, excepting at the back-seat where the protuberance is. Here the\nclothes are clustered, and hang down in a trail upon the ground! The\nfeet are thrust into very high-heeled shoes, or boots; so, in walking,\nthe woman stoops mincingly forward with short, unsteady steps, as if\npinched at the toes, rattling her heels upon the pavement, and tossing\nher back-gear and headdress, and showing off to an astonished observer\n(unused to the apparition) something to be remembered! On every little\noccasion taking up her _trail_, and discovering legs and ankles.\n\nAt home, when receiving male and female friends to dinner, the women\ndo as they please--also in dances, routs, and the like. I was invited,\nsoon after my arrival, to dine. I had looked at a _Book of rites_\nand ceremonies for the great, and hoped to get on tolerably well. On\narriving, my first mistake was to address the servant as Illustrious,\ntaking him for the master. In many houses the servant, dressed like\nthe master (being much more of a man in appearance), may well be\ntaken for him; but in some houses the servants are made to wear\n_badges and colours_ of their station. Women are very choice about\nthese men-servants, and will not have one unless he have very large,\nwell-formed _calves_ [fa-tze]. I have heard that the rogues supply this\nrequirement by adding so much fine hay to the leg as will give due\nswell and figure!\n\nUpon being shown up to the room, where I was to address myself first to\nthe _Lady_--the Illustrious wife--I made my next blunder. The lady was\nlarge, full of flesh, rather red, with bright eyes. Another lady, just\nmoving away, trailed her long robe suddenly before me--my foot caught\nand held her. She turned her white shoulders upon me, frowned--at the\nmoment I stumbled, and recovered myself awkwardly, with open hands full\nupon the ample bosom of the Illustrious! Ah, my confusion! I could not\nrecover my composure. I could see nothing but necks, shoulders, backs,\nbosoms of women, and eyes flashing at me--heads, and feathers and\njewels--lights, noise, confusion! I got away--never knew how.\n\nWomen, when undressed in this indelicate way, are said to be in _full\ndress_. I think this is a sly sarcasm of the men. The men, however,\ndress in a manner not at all better. When in full dress, they put\non a ridiculous close garment, slit up behind, and very scant, with\ntwo tails, which pretend to cover the hinder parts. The _trowsers_\n(an \"unmentionable\" article for the legs), no more than the _under_\ngarment worn by us, is the only covering for the legs and lower part of\nthe body! Imagine the indelicacy! In this style of _full dress_, the\nwomen and men of the High-Caste Barbarians meet and mingle together\neverywhere, and at all feasts, revelries, and dances.\n\nIn the shows within-doors the same mode prevails. At the public\nspectacles, in full view of thousands, ladies sit exposed to the gaze\nof men, who often level at them the magnifying glasses taken for\nthe purpose! Critically examining the exhibition before them from a\ndistance of twenty feet [tu-fai].\n\nThe dress of women on horseback is as follows:--The head is covered\nwith a man's head-gear, round, hard, high, black in colour, with a\nnarrow rim. The bust and body are just as tightly fitted as possible,\nthe hips and figure exposed in exact shape (how much _made up_ no one\ncan more than conjecture), and the legs covered by the dress falling\nover them long and full. The woman sits on a side-saddle, one leg\nwell up over a horn of the saddle near the front top, and the other\nsupported with the foot in a steel rest. She is lifted by a male\nservant, relative, or friend, into her perch. And when she, with the\nlittle whip in hand, takes up the long strips of leather by which she\nguides the horse, and starts off, there is a show the most curious!\nUp and down, with every motion of the horse, she _bobs_ [Ko-bys],\nexposing, to any one looking after her, the most precise model of\nherself! but in an attitude and costume so remarkable, that I never saw\neven the accustomed Barbarians disregard an opportunity to see _this\nshow_, however indifferent they may usually be. Nor do I think that the\nBarbarian women esteem any exhibition of themselves superior to this.\n\nIn the country you will see several apparitions of this kind, urging\ntheir flying horses after men and dogs, all chasing _pell-mell_ some\npoor hare, which, running for cover, is pursued by a crowd of men and\nwomen on horseback, with dogs, yelping, barking, men blowing horns and\nshouting; the women on the horses leaping over fences, ditches, and\nurging their horses as wildly, boldly as the men--and sometimes in\nall respects as skilfully and well! This Sport is considered by the\nBarbarians to be very manly--nor do they consider a broken back, or\neven neck, as any objection to it!\n\nThe _Rout_ is a favourite amusement with the High-Castes. So named from\nthe confusion of armed men when _routed_--put to flight. It is to get\ntogether just as many people of both sexes as possible. With no sort\nof regard to the size of the house, but only to show how many of the\nHigh-Caste will respond to the invitation.\n\nIn full _undress_ the ladies and _gentlemen_ (Barbarian style for any\nHigh-Caste man) crowd into the house. Every stairway, every hall,\nroom, chamber is filled. Refreshments are provided, but the flux and\nreflux of the people render all eating and drinking very difficult. The\nwomen flash in jewels, pendants in the ears, sparkling brilliants on\narms, busts, ornaments of flowers and gems in the hair, jewelled fans\nin hand, perfumed laces and scarfs, tinted, and flushed, and adorned,\nexposed to bewilder and intoxicate the men--in fine, in the pursuit of\nhusbands, or bent upon flirtations! These entertainments are designed\nfor the very purpose of excitement and match-making. \"_Society_ is kept\nalive--life is made endurable by these things,\" the High-Caste women\nsay. They have no other business but to attend to such matters; and to\nthem _Society_ looks to save it from dissolution and despair!\n\nIn the _Rout_ all is confusion and opportunity. The young people,\nthe old people, the highest and the lowest (permissible), are thrown\npromiscuously together. Women and men mingle, jostle, jamb, crowd,\nwriggle, and writhe together as best they can. The young lady suddenly\nfinds herself quite in the arms of the young man who has saved her from\na fall; and he, in turn, \"_begs pardon_\" of some woman, into whose lap\nhe has almost been thrown by a sudden press.\n\nAcquaintances may be made, _flirtations_ begun, ending in something or\nnothing. But _Society_ has had its excitement, and its members their\nchances for mere idle display, gossip, sensual gratification, or\nthe more serious business of High-life--_fortune-hunting_ by men and\n_husband-catching_ by women! The _Waltz and Dance_ are, however, the\ngreat game (for they are really one) of Barbarian life. Every Caste,\naccording to its ability, dances--the low imitating, to their best, all\nthe \"_airs and graces_,\" dress and _flirtations_ of their superiors. In\nthe Waltz, when the music strikes up, the man takes the woman about the\nwaist, standing with the other dancers in the middle of the floor, and\nshe leans upon his shoulder interlocking the fingers of her disengaged\nhand in his. In this close position, they begin to wheel around,\naround; one couple follows another about the clear space left for\nthem, till many couples are seen twirling, whirling about, around to\nthe sound of the music--ever in this wild, whirling sort of a gallop,\nfollowing one after another, rapidly! The long trails of the woman are\nheld up, the embroidered skirts fly out, the silken shoes and hose\nflash; she is held close and more closely in the supporting arm, her\ncheek almost touches, her bust, neck, and face glow with excitement,\nthe eyes and jewels sparkle, the man and woman whirl about, till\nintoxicated, dazed, and nearly exhausted, she sinks upon his arm and\nmotions for rest, and he half supports and half leads her to some soft\nbench or chair! Such briefly is the Waltz. The dance is the same thing\nnearly, only more variety of movement is introduced. The whole object\nis to bring the sexes together, and keep _Society_ alive, as before.\n_Flirtation_ and match-making being main elements of social life.\n\nThe manners of the High-Caste are not really more refined than\nelsewhere; only there is a cool tone. Nothing must surprise, nothing\nconfuse, nothing abash. A blush must be as rare as a laugh. A young\nwoman seeing a young man gazing at her with bold admiration, must\ncoolly _look him down_--if she please. His is an action of mere\nrudeness, or _should_ be, when directed to a virtuous woman: but\nno, \"a man may gaze upon what is everywhere exhibited _for_ his\nadmiration--may he not?\" And yet, with strange inconsistency, a\nwoman has a right to complain if a man, captivated by the very means\ndesigned, too rudely express his pleasure. And one man is required\nto chastise another for the rudeness to his relative, though he know\nthat, in the nature of things, the female should expect what she\nencounters--and more, the complexity is further involved, that though\none man must call another to account for this sort of rudeness, yet\nevery man indulges in it!\n\nYoung people, in public, of the two sexes, without shame appear in\nclose intimacy--and will look upon statues and paintings of naked women\nand men, talking and criticizing, examining the works and looking at\nthem in company, without confusion, or appearance of there being any\nindelicacy. As if, in fact, in the bosoms of the High-Caste there did\nnot exist any of the passions of ordinary mortals!\n\nThere are very numerous galleries of Art, where statues, paintings,\npictures, models, and the like, are shown, which are always crowded\nby High-Caste women, children, and men. And shop-windows are made\nattractive by displays of pictures of nude, or half-nude, women\nand men, who act in the Plays, or who are notorious in Spectacles.\nThis sort of indecency prevails; and strikes one, not used to it,\nwith an unpleasant surprise. He knows not what to think of its\nsignificance--have all his ideas of decency been indecent?\n\nI am not able to say much of the interior life of the family. I was\ntold that a happy family was rare--quite an exception. It is only\n_where the wife rules_ that any peace is secured. The wife is allowed\nto do, generally, in Society and at home, as she will. The husband goes\noff to _his_ pastimes and pursuits. Children whilst young are committed\nto the care of servants, and when older sent away to be educated and\ntrained by hirelings.\n\nThe daughters, when grown, often move the jealousy of the mother by\nattracting more attention from men--they are often _snubbed_ and made\nto dress unbecomingly, so that the mother may shine.\n\nMarriage among the High-Caste is an arrangement for an _establishment_;\nand to secure the succession of family name and title. To these ends\ngreat care is given to the money question. The man demands money for\ntaking the wife. Domestic happiness is hardly thought of; unless,\noccasionally, by very young people, and they are laughed out of their\nridiculous romance.\n\nIn the marriage ceremony, the wife, in the presence of the Idols, and\nfollowing the Invocations of the Priest, solemnly promises to obey\nthe husband. But this is regarded as a mere form. Any husband who\nundertakes to enforce obedience, finds himself branded by _Society_,\nas a \"brute!\" Much of the infelicity in marriage rests upon this false\nbasis. For, with the virile instinct, man naturally expects obedience;\nyet has, in his unmarried days, fallen in with the false notion of\nwoman's superiority in delicacy and moral virtue. This peculiar\naffectation colours all Barbarian intercourse with the sex. It has its\nroot in the _Superstition_, possibly; where an immaculate virgin gives\nbirth to a _Son_ of god-_Jah_! who is the Christ-god. Thus, woman came\nto be mother of God!\n\nFrom this, very likely, followed all the false worship and gallantry of\nthe barbarians; who still, keeping up this mode of treating women as\nsuperior in excellency, could scarcely deny to them a superior place\nin the family. Assumed to be absolutely chaste and pure, they are\nto be implicitly trusted--nor _to them_ is there impropriety! Hence\nfollows the _fine Art_ exhibitions--the undress dress; the waltz; the\nmixed crowds--the _everything_, where women, according to the ordinary\nfeelings of cultivated men, should not be, or be in a very different\nway. But the man before marriage, and afterwards, too, (excepting to\nhis own wife), pretends to look upon woman as a divinity--as something\nfar above him in moral goodness! _After_ marriage, it is difficult\nto dethrone this divinity--the man has not a divinity at the head of\nhis family; but all his friends (male friends) pretend to think so;\nSociety says so; and he is _himself_ compelled to _pretend to the same\nthing_. Under these circumstances he will never be likely to get much\nobedience. None the less, a struggle commences; the man persistent,\nstrong; the woman unyielding, crafty; the family divided; the children\ndemoralized; a false and wretched farce of conjugal _Play_, so badly\nacted as to deceive not even _Society!_ and finally ending in the\nDivorce Court.\n\nThis is the tribunal where _Causes Matrimonial_ are settled; and, if\none may judge from its Reports in the _Gazette_, conjugal contention\nis exceedingly common. For the public cases must be few, compared with\nthose where publicity is avoided by private arrangement.\n\nDoubtless, a fine man and an excellent woman may unite, and live\nhappily together, in spite of the unfavourable conditions. But, more\ncommonly, the high-minded man, really believing in the superior purity\nof the sex, and her greater moral delicacy, finds his _Ideal_ to be too\nhigh; and without absolute cause to quarrel; in fact, seeing that his\nIdeal was _itself_ only an error of the prevailing delusion; ever after\nstruggles to bring himself into harmony with the existing fact--to\nlove and respect a woman and only a woman, with a woman's vanity, love\nof excitement, frivolity and caprice--a very weary work. The woman,\ntoo, still flattered, and exacting the devotion which her _lover_\n(now her husband) gave to her in his days of delusion, thinks herself\ntreated with coldness; and, gradually, by her unreasonable complaints,\nestranges altogether the husband, whom she, too, tries to forget, in\nthe admiration, flatteries, and excitements of Society!\n\nThe affectation and falsity, therefore, respecting woman, tends to a\nfundamental error in the relation of the sexes and the ordering of the\nfamily. It is a strange and almost fatal error to give this exaltation\nto woman. No doubt, a real trust and respect tend to secure, in some\ndegree, the virtues accorded; and this true respect of an honest\nman, who places his wife, or his relative, before himself in purity,\nchallenges the best of nature in the female. But man has reversed the\ntrue order, and run counter to the true instinct of the race (quite as\nstrong in the female as in himself), when he thus puts woman before\nhim, in anything. What authority is there for this reversal of the\nnatural order? Why is woman more moral, more chaste? There is nothing\nin the nature of things, why the man, here, as in all things, should\nnot be, as he is, the superior--the master. In morals he should be her\nguide, her teacher, her best support. That Society is, indeed, unsound,\nwherein the man may be low and sensual, and fancy, or pretend to fancy,\nthat the woman is better than himself--it is a delusion. Man gives the\nreal character to any Society--the woman will not be, cannot be better\nthan the man. The English Barbarians, in spite of the absurd falsity\nof their customs, must have some tolerably happy families. The innate\nperception of the eternal fitness of things will cause many couples to\narrive at a proper method. The wife, without exactly admitting it, even\nto herself, submits to her husband; and the husband, without exactly\ncommanding (except in rare instances), feels that he is really the head\nof the house--and the family gets on pretty smoothly, because living in\nthe natural order. But, in general, the struggle for mastery destroys\neither the existence of the family, or all attempts at affectionate\nways of living. To avoid public scandal, the members do not actually\nseparate; but all harmony and true domestic life are lost--and life is\na dismal and disorderly rout.\n\nThe exaltation of the sex and the complete freedom allowed to them\nbelong to a state of society, if any such there be, where man is\nstill _more_ excellent. There, indeed, a bright and beautiful ideal\nis made real, and men and women know how to love and to obey; and\nlove is as true as the respect and the obedience. The Barbarians,\nfull of immorality, of rudeness, of strong passions, of selfishness,\ncontrolled by a false conception founded in their Idolatry, act, in\nrespect of their women, as if purity, cultivation, generosity, and the\nhighest morality, everywhere existed! This, so false, is well-nigh\nfatal to them. Yet, it is only an illustration of the uncultivated and\nconfused state of mind, even in the highest, that so simple a thing\nas the natural order governing the relation of sex and family is not\ncomprehended; and that their Society is saved from absolute wreck only\nby the strong and controlling instinct of nature, which, in spite of\nobstacles, does bring the female into subjection to the male--at least\nto an extent sufficient to make life possible!\n\nNone the less the disorder of households is dreadful. Sons and\ndaughters, as they grow strong, assert themselves [Quan-hang-ho].\nThey act and speak (and in this follow the wife and mother) as if the\nsole business of the father was to give the means of selfish, idle\nindulgence. This would not be so unjust among the High-Caste, but it\ndescends to all grades, and the middle orders are content to see the\nfather toil at his business till overworked, or ruined altogether, in\nhis efforts to supply these daily exactions. No doubt he himself is a\nvictim to the whole vicious falseness--yet the cold-bloodedness of this\nconduct on the part of children and wives is remarkable. \"Obedience,\"\nor \"gratitude!\"--Words sneered at, laughed at!\n\nThe daughters, directed by _Mamma_ [na-ni-go], are taught to dress, to\n_look_ modest, to practise all those arts by which they may attract the\nmale and secure husbands, and are exhibited in public places and in\nSociety accordingly.\n\nThe sons are sent off to be taught. In the _Halls of Learning_ they\nacquire but little of the knowledge paid for in the _Lists_, but a\ngreat deal of that which does not appear there. A youth may have\nentered, at least, honest, moral, and generous--he still leaves\nunlearned, but dishonest, corrupt, selfish--he has acquired that\nknowledge most sought for (even by his parents), a knowledge of the\n_World_ [Quang]! In truth, the youth instinctively feels that it\nis better for his success in life to know the World than to know\nLetters. He acts upon this feeling, which thrives in the demoralised\natmosphere which he breathes. Father is called _Governor_, and is\nregarded as a sort of creature to be made the most of! The money\nallowed (perhaps too ample for really useful purposes) is spent in\nthings foolish and hurtful. Money and time are wasted. The latter is\nvalueless, to be sure, to these youths anywhere--but the money may be\nwrung from relatives, who put themselves on short diet to enable the\nson or brother (who is defrauding them) to appear well in _Society_!\nTo perfect himself in the learning which he feels to be effective,\nhe devises _new_ methods of wringing more money from the _Governor_,\nwho begins to protest. To drink, smoke, lounge about with easy and\ncool impudence; to stare into the face of women; to bet, gamble; to\nget in debt, and curse the creditors who presume to ask for pay;\nto make, or pretend to make, love; and generally to lay broad and\ndeep that moral and cultivated _elegance_, to take on that exquisite\n_polish_ [gla-mshi], which shall dazzle society; shall attract the\nsilly butterflies (women) who have influence or money; shall, in fine,\nshine in the Grand Council, or at the head of armed bands, or to the\nillumination of the Courts of Law! Noble ambition, based upon manly\nprinciples! With the Barbarians to be a moral and wise man is to be a\n_milksop_ [Kou-bab]; to be _a polished man of the World_--admirable!\n\nThe English Barbarians who are fathers, generally consider it rather a\n_joke_ to have their sons trick them and poke fun at the \"_Governor_,\"\nonly it must be marked with some pretence of deference. If the \"_young\nfellows_\" do not positively disgrace the family--that is, marry some\npoor creature whom they have first debauched; or actually forge, or\nrob, or descend to improper friendships with inferior Castes--the\nparents esteem themselves to be fortunate. If he have acquired no\nknowledge of letters, nor of anything but vices, yet he is a \"_fine,\nmanly fellow_, who will make his mark in the world.\" That is, he is a\ntall, strong, active _Barbarian_--just fit for the armed bands!\n\nThe infelicities and disorders of family life, which only prefigure\nthe inevitable confusion and evils of the whole Society, are more\nintolerable among the Middle Castes. In the _Highest, secured revenues_\nenable the wife and the husband each to see as little of each other\nas they please; and so long as the husband is not stirred up by _Mrs.\nGrundy_ (who is not severe with this Caste) he cares but little what\nhis wife may do. _He_ goes about his sports and his pleasures as he\npleases; and his wife, not wishing to be looked after, does not look\nafter him. On this free-and-easy footing, with no want of money (_Mrs.\nGrundy's decorum_ being observed), they get on well enough, and may\neven form quite a friendship for each other. But it is not possible to\nestablish this condition in a family of small income--and here it is\nthat the wretchedness of false principles has full scope. The husband\nand father, honest and good, finds himself mated to a woman, weak and\nvain, with children moulded by her. He, misled by false notions and\nignorance, took to his heart one whom he fully trusted as simply true\nand modest; he took her for herself and without money, and flattered\nhimself that she would be a helper and solace. She and her children\nhave made him a miserable _slave_, who finds no quiet unless he satisfy\nall their clamorous demands--_to shine in Society_! If a good man, he\ntries to obey and live, even under exactions beyond his utmost efforts;\nfor he has learned to see that his wife, though weak, is no worse than\nthe Society which she loves, and which he also cannot escape; he is\nmerely in a false position, and must largely thank himself for having\nheedlessly entered upon it!\n\nBut this kind of man is not universal, and one may judge what follows,\nwhere there is a man who will not yield, or yields only because he no\nlonger cares for anything but his personal ease and indulgence--seeking\nfor pleasure, though unlawful, abroad, as the only recompense\nattainable for the loss of happiness at home!\n\nSuch a man feels that life is insupportable, where he makes so wretched\nan object--to be merely the _mute beast_ of burden for the family,\nwithout receiving so much tenderness and consideration as is accorded\nto the dogs lolling in the lazy laps of the females of the house! He\nseeks, therefore, abroad for some means of enjoyment, though illicit!\n\nThis sort of picture is to be seen everywhere in the Barbarian\n_Literature_, and is constantly shown in all its minute and miserable\nexhibition at the Courts of Divorce.\n\nAdultery, which in our _Flowery Land_ is punished by death, is not\nso much as a crime among the English Barbarians. And, as it is the\nchief cause for which the bond of marriage may be wholly severed, one\nmay judge whether the Court do not encourage the immorality. For when\nparties wish to live apart, here is a way to secure it, lying directly\nin the path of desire and opportunity. Then, too, the _seduction_ of a\nmaiden, which with us may be punished even to death, receives no sort\nof reprobation in the Court, and scarcely in Society. If the ruined\ngirl be of low caste, her relatives feel no disgrace if the seducer be\na High-Caste--rather an honour; receive from him some paltry sum (not\nso much as he lavishes upon some favourite dogs), and buy with the\nmoney a husband for her from her own Caste!\n\nWith us a guilty _intrigue_ is almost unknown; with the Barbarians it\nis almost a pursuit.\n\nNone the less, there is too much vigour in the organism; too much\nmoral, intellectual, and physical strength, to suffer total decay. As\nis always the case, where the mind is active, even Idolatry itself has\nintermixed a pure morality, and the Barbarian nature, still unformed,\nuntrained; still rude and stirred by passion and by force; wrestles\nwith the divine _instinct_, and, unconsciously, often moulds to its\nlight.\n\nAway from the glitter and _sham_ (sometimes _in it_, but not of it),\nthere are quiet families which live lives of honour. The father works\nhonestly and cheerfully; the wife, in her house, finds the beginning\nand end of her aims, of her love, and her duty. The husband-father is\nhead; on him rests all responsibility, and to him belong _obedience_.\nThis is not exacted; it is not questioned. It is founded in love\nand respect; love and loving obedience spontaneously arising from\nuncorrupted natures. _His_ whole being responds with unmeasured joy.\nWhatever is pure, high, tender; all are for these--his wife, his\nfamily; so true, so trusting, so helpful, so delightful. He feels no\nhardship; there can be no sacrifice, for these; all that is done is\nin harmony with himself. _Everywhere_ he is in accord. The very ills\nand misfortunes of life touch him not, for he is living in the _divine\norder_.\n\nAnd from such a man, the inside-life being serene, outer ills fall\naway. He is so clear and simple; so _whole_ that nature smiles for\nhim, even in pain and sorrow; he lives in the presence and calm of the\nSovereign Lord.\n\nThese families are the _Salt_ which saves. Among the Barbarians they\nare generally obscure, and as wholly unconscious of the service which\nthey render as are the glittering inanities which ignore them. This\nshould be reversed, and the _Inanities_ sink into obscurity.\n\nI will now say a word or two as to the personal appearance and\ndemeanour of the Barbarians. There is no standard of best-looking, and\neach tribe will judge from _its_ best type. In general the eyes are\ntoo prominent and open; the nose large and irregular; the teeth bad or\nfalse; the height indifferent; the figure either too lean or too fat.\nThe hair all colours; red and light most common. The women are so made\nup, judging from the articles openly exposed for sale, that one cannot\nspeak of them with any certainty. The hair, teeth, complexion, bust,\noutline of form, are all false or artistically got up. The eyes are too\nbold and open. The feet long, and hands large. Too tall, and either\ntoo meagre or too stout. The youth are sometimes pretty. The women are\noften brilliant under gaslight (a bright, artificial light). I have\nspoken of dress, but I may mention that the women, not content with\nevery sort of _made-up_ thing to add to their attractions, pile upon\ntheir heads an enormity of false curls, bands of hair, laces, and high\nsort of head-ornaments; it is truly amazing. Some of these gewgaws are\nhung upon big pig-tails of false hair, and some are stuck high a-top.\nNothing really can be more absurd, unless the false, mincing steps,\nand protruding back. Some women are beautiful; but to my unaccustomed\nlooks, even the brilliant eyes could not blind me to so immodest an\nexhibition--or, to _me_, not modest--so instinctively do we demand that\nespecial quality in the sex, as the crowning grace of true beauty.\n\nOne thing of a personal kind in the habits of all, high and low, I\nremarked, which would be intolerable to us. A lady or a gentleman,\nwhilst conversing with you, or at the table of feasting, will suddenly\napply a handkerchief [m\u00fcn-shi] to nose, and blow that organ in the most\nastounding manner; and this may be continued for some minutes, even\naccompanied by _hauks and spits_, and closed by many nice attentions\nto the orifices not worth while to describe. Surely this strange thing\ndisconcerted me very greatly at first, nor do I understand how any\npeople above savages could do it. A fine _lady_ will interrupt herself\nin the very midst of speech, or of eating, with spasmodic effort,\nto clear her head; emptying into her fine pocket-handkerchief the\nobnoxious matter, and then returning the article to her silken pocket.\n\nHowever, we should not expect refinement in a Society where the women\nmay boldly mount a horse-back, and follow men and dogs over ditch and\nwall, urging her steed with the best, to come in to the death of the\npoor hunted creature. And this, a noble sport, fit for a lady! Nor\nthis only, but will crowd to public spectacles, and be hustled and\ncrowded promiscuously, forgetful of all delicate reserve. These habits\nare only to be criticised because of the boasted pr\u00ebeminence claimed\nin all such matters. But what would be thought of our _Literati_\npiling into the mouth huge morsels of flesh, or of guzzling [kun-ki]\n(with a gulping noise in the throat), great swallows of a hot, greasy\nliquid, besmearing the lips and beard. The Barbarians know nothing of\nour delicate mode of eating, where all is silence and decorum whilst\nin the act. Another most unaccountable thing to a stranger is the\nrobbery allowed by the servants of the High-Caste. If you accept of\nthe hospitality of a great man, you must submit to be plundered by his\nservants; and, as a stranger cannot know the limits imposed upon this\nrapacity, it goes far to destroy all the pretence of graciousness in\none's reception. When you have eaten at my Lord's table, to think you\nare to be _fleeced_ [pe-ekd] by my Lord's _flunki_!\n\nI was once invited by a High-Caste to come to his house in the country\nand shoot game. I accepted, and soon went into the copses to hunt for\nbirds for the table. A servant accompanied me by command of his master,\nto show me the grounds and to wait upon me. He was very civil. The next\nday, upon my leaving, this man, decked in the livery [bung-shi] of\nhis Lord, closely eyed and stuck to me, till, at length, I perceived\nhe wanted something. Only partially aware of the Barbarian custom,\nand blushing at the idea of _feeing_ [tin-ti] or giving anything in\nreturn for hospitality, I awkwardly fumbled in my purse and handed to\nhim a half-crown. He contemptuously looked at the silver piece, then\nat me; and remarked that the \"_gentlemen_ of my Lord did not receive\ngratuities of that colour.\" Meaning that gold was only fit for such an\nexalted minion.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nOF THE APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY--AND OTHER THINGS.\n\n\nThe country is so small, that, riding in the swift steam-chariots, it\nis traversed in an incredibly short time.\n\nIn those parts not disfigured by the smoke vomited out from the huge\nfire-chimneys of factories, mines, and the like, nor by the nearness of\ngreat towns, the country presents a green and cultivated look; nearly\nas well tilled as our provinces, Quang-tun and Chiang-su. The villages,\nTemples with lofty towers, great Houses of the High-Castes, here and\nthere; trees, gardens, smooth fields of fine verdure, over which cattle\nand sheep are feeding; rising hills and sheltered valleys, rich with\ncopses, orchards, and groves--all seen in moving views--give an aspect\nof peace, comfort, and wealth. You do not see the poverty, nor, too\nclosely, observe the dwellings of the poor.\n\nIn winter it is cold, and the whole appearance changes. Far to the\nNorth, the sun gives but little light--and, like the climate of our\nprovinces by the great Northern Wall, the cold is severe, and the gloom\ndeeper. Ice is formed upon the streams and canals, and snow frequently\ncovers the ground.\n\nIn approaching great towns, you often catch glimpses of the crowded,\nwretched streets, where misery only thrives. In some places, in the\nwinter cold, smoke and darkness, life becomes intolerable to many.\nOut of doors you can hardly find your way, and thieves and beggars\nemerge from covert to ply their trades. In the night, at such times,\nit is only possible to move by the glare of many torches; and people\nare often robbed, or bewildered and lost. At this season of darkness\nmany go mad. There is a strong vein of _horror_ in the Barbarian\nimagination, derived from their ferocious ancestors, from their\nold idolatries, and deepened by the new. In the gloom, the misery,\nthe wretchedness--sometimes in sheer disgust of life--many rush\nupon self-destruction--throwing themselves under the wheels of the\nsteam-chariots, and from the bridges into the canals and rivers. Many\npersons are thrown down, maimed or killed in the highways, by horses or\nby vehicles moving along. Yet, in the grim humour of these barbarians,\nthis is the very time when the High-Castes begin their _revelries_, and\nthe Low-Castes most indulge in drink and riot.\n\nIn travelling through the country, you will occasionally notice,\nseated upon an eminence, some strong Castle, or Place, of hewn stone,\nbelonging to a High-Caste. It will be approached through long avenues\nof lofty trees, and stand pre-eminent among fine groves, surrounded by\nbroad lands. These wide Parks contain many thousands of acres [met-si],\nleft untilled and unproductive; merely with their green slopes and\nspaces, interspersed with trees, to give grandeur to the Castle and\nits Lord. Still, if you look closely, you will discover near by, the\nsqualid huts where _huddle_ the _Serfs_, who are starving in the midst\nof this rich profusion--Serfs, who never have an _inch_ [toe] of land\nof their own, and to whose wornout _carcases_ is begrudged a pauper\ngrave!\n\nThe inequality between Castes is quite as conspicuous in country as\nin town. One is born to an abundance, the other to hunger; one to a\nlife of self-indulgence, the other to one of enforced and hard-worked\nself-sacrifice. The one, at last, is covered by a tomb, emblazoned with\nHonour; the other is cast into an obscure corner of despised dead, to\nrot in forgetfulness--though, often, judged upon a true measure of\nmerit, the resting-places should be exchanged--and the idle and vicious\n_Lord_ [chiang-se] descend into ignominious neglect!\n\nYou will see deer, pheasants, partridges, hares, and the like, almost\ntame, in the meadows and copses; but the tillers of the soil must\nnot touch them, though starving--they are carefully _preserved_ for\nthe Lord [Tchou]. Not that he needs them, or cares for them for\nfood--_sometimes_ he likes to shoot them for idle diversion!\n\nYou will notice sturdy _tramps_ (beggars) resting, or lazily slouching\nalong by the ways, with heavy staves in their hands; and, if you\nsuddenly come upon these in a secluded place, very likely you will be\naccosted--\"Master, I be'se hungry--will ye give me tuppence?\" You do\nnot like the bearing of the man--and would not notice him. But you\nobserve his face and the clutch of his thick stick--and you hurry to\nhand him a sixpence, and get away! These scamps prowl about, idle,\nready for mischief, scornful of honest work--the terror of women and\nchildren who meet them, unexpectedly, without protection.\n\nSometimes the Iron-roads for Steam-chariots are carried over the\nhousetops, in entering towns; sometimes, through long tunnels under\nthe houses, or under hills--and the works in connection with these\nroads are surprising. The Barbarians of the Low-Castes are forced\nto incessant labours, to prevent starvation. These must be greatly\ndirected to mines of iron, coal, copper, and tin; and to various things\nmade from these, and from wool and cotton. For the fruits of the land\ncannot feed the population. The amount of food which must be brought\nfrom beyond seas is very great--and to pay for this, the products of\nindustry must be given. Now, other Barbarian tribes make these things\nalso, and; having them, do not require the English; in fact, in more\ndistant parts, undersell them. From this cause, many are unemployed and\nturned adrift--they have no land to till; they beg, steal, and starve.\nShould this inability of the English Barbarians increase, there would\nbe no sufficient employment for the Low-Castes--there would not be the\nmeans of paying for the food required--and depopulation must ensue! The\nwealth of the High-Caste must shrink--_the English tribe must decline\nin strength_!\n\nMany of the High-Caste, already anticipating danger to\nthemselves--fearing not merely loss of revenue, but the savage ferocity\nof starving multitudes--promote schemes by which large numbers of the\npoor are shipped off far beyond the great Seas (so that they never\nshall return)--to starve, or live, as may chance. \"England is well rid\nof them!\" they say.\n\nIn the neighbouring island, Ireland, an actual starvation of the\npeople in vast numbers happened a short time since. As in England,\nthe poor _serfs_, tilling the soil and owning none; at _the best_,\ntoiling for the High-Castes for such pittance as would buy the\ncheapest food--_potatoes_; when these failed, could buy nothing--all\nelse too dear. _These failed, the serfs died_ by thousands and tens\nof thousands. Not because Ireland was destitute of food; such was\nthe abundance that ample stores were actually sold for other and\ndistant tribes! but because, in the midst of plenty, the starving were\npowerless to touch it; it was out of _their_ reach--out of the reach\nof paupers! The potatoes were not--and they must die. The annals of\nno people record such a depopulation of a fertile land, in the midst\nof peace and plenty--there is no parallel! A people dying, not from\nidleness, nor unwillingness to work; not from want of food at hand; not\nfrom the ravages of war, nor pestilence; but from sheer poverty! Yet,\nthe English Barbarians boast that no people are so rich, so generous!\nIn our own annals are recorded great sufferings from floods, failures\nof crops, and natural causes; where our vast populations have been for\na time _deficient_ in _food_; but we have nothing to compare with this\nBarbarian horror!\n\nThe _Thames_ is the only considerable river. This flows through the\ngreatest of all the cities of the West--London. It is an insignificant\nstream--much less than even the _Quang-tun_, in our chief Southern\nprovince.\n\nAs it flows through the great city it is, in some places, confined\nby high hewn-stone terraces [kar-tra]. These are truly great works,\nand useful, worthy of a strong people. On the river bank is the vast\n_Hall_ of the Grand Council; with its lofty towers, turrets, clocks,\nand many bells. The architecture is not like anything known to us--it\nis the _Gothic_, which I have mentioned elsewhere. Why this style, so\ncharacteristic and fit in the Temples, is used in this grand Hall, I\nknow not; but probably because this barbarous form was that of the old\nHall, destroyed by fire some time since. And the barbaric stolidity\nsticks to its habit, however inconvenient and unfit. Not far away, may\nbe seen the Dome and Towers of a fine Roman-Grecian Temple, clear and\ndefined, giving expression to an orderly and trained mind, severe in\ndignity and beauty. But the _Gothic_, expressing, or trying to express,\nsomething very different; and, rising in the Temples of a gloomy,\ndark Superstition, to a horrible and unformed shape! With _that_ the\ndisorderly brain burdened _itself_ and the river bank--a pile at once\nwonderful and abortive!\n\nLondon is very large, perhaps equal to some of our greatest cities. For\nthe most part very dirty and grim, and badly built. The river shows its\ngreat trade--not inland, but from abroad. You can discern, rising above\nthe buildings, the many tall masts of the ships like forests dried up.\nAnd you will observe the numerous vessels with high chimneys; these\nare the vessels moved by _steam_--and the incredible number of small\ncraft. At one point you will remark the tall white towers and the high\nprison walls of stone, erected by the Barbarian chief from the Main\nLand who subdued the English tribes in our dynasty _Song_, and made\nthis huge Castle a stronghold and prison.\n\nLower down rises, close by the shore, one of the best in style of all\nthe Barbarian monuments. It is a fine Palace in carved stone, built,\nafter the Roman forms, to perpetuate the remembrance of _Victories_\ngained over distant tribes. Within are great Paintings of these\nVictories. Terrible scenes of devastation and cruelty; bloody fights\nand dreadful conflagrations, by sea and land; rapine, massacre,\nunbridled fury! These are the most admired of all things by the\nBarbarians--by the Low-Castes, who are almost entirely the victims,\nas much as by the High. The sight of these kindles their passion for\nbloody force. They _Hoorah!_ with an indescribable _yell_ [zung]\nwhenever they wish to show their frantic delight at any exhibition of\nbrutal ferocity. This _yell_ is greatly gloried in, and vaunted to be\nfar more terrible than that of _any other_ tribe--that by it _alone_,\nwhen raised upon the air by fierce bands, English Barbarians have\nrouted armed hosts!\n\nWhen one is in the narrow seas of the English, very many vessels may\nbe seen, and near the coasts fleets of fishing craft. The fishermen\nlive in great poverty, in miserable villages by the seaside. They\nuse lines and snares, sometimes like ours, but are not so ingenious\nin catching the sea-creatures as are our fishermen. They have never\ntrained birds to the work. Their huts are noisome, and their habits\nand dress unclean. They wear a curious cover upon the head, like a\nbasin, with a long wide flap behind. This is all besmeared with a\nthick, black oil--and their clothing is stiff and nasty with the same\nunctuous stuff. The oil is to exclude the sea-spray and wet. Their\nspeech is nearly unintelligible to the _Literati_, though comprehended\nby their own _Caste_; they are of the lowest--serfs. Multitudes of\nthese rude and unlettered Barbarians perish amid the waves in the\nstorms of winter--being forced to imperil their lives that they may\nlive _at all_. They are quite a feature in some parts, with their\nawkward uncouthness. They are addicted to the grossest superstitions of\n_the_ Superstition. They have many legends about the dark _devil-god_,\nand swear by _him_ mostly. They seem to think to cheat him--though they\ncautiously observe those things which may entrap them, and nothing\nwould tempt them to put to sea on the _devil's day_--Friday. To do so,\nwould be to go to the _devil's Locker_ (as they call it) at once! This\nclass is similar to the sailor [mat-le-si] known in our ports, and the\ncharacter may therefore be fairly judged. The fisherman, in fact, often\nchanges into the ships and goes upon distant voyages.\n\nThere are no mountains, only pretty high hills, in the English\nprovinces. The loftiest are in the far Northern parts, where are also\nsome small lakes. In the winter these loftier ridges of land are\nsometimes white with snow. The inhabitants are savages, having their\nlegs naked and bodies wrapped about in loose robes and skins, secured\nby a belt, into which a knife is stuck, and to which a long leather\npouch is hung. In this pouch they place some dry corn [matze], which,\nwith strong wine in a bottle suspended from the neck, enables them to\nlive for days. Thus equipped, they descend to the valleys, and drive\noff to their haunts in the rocky hills the cattle of the more civilised\npeople of the plains.\n\nThe English Barbarians have never conquered these fierce tribes of the\nNorthern hills, but have contrived gradually to destroy and to remove\nthem. So that, at present, what few remain are quite tamed. A great\nmany, in times past, were cunningly betrayed to the English and put to\nthe sword; but, in latter days, the _head-chiefs_ have been bought by\nthe English, and used to entice their ignorant but devoted serfs to\nenter into the armed bands to be sent beyond seas. By these methods,\nthose distant Northern parts have been, in good degree, depopulated and\nmade quiet.\n\nThe Low-Castes furnish the fierce savages so well known in our\nCelestial Waters as those who live in the great fire-ships.\n\nNow, when the English tribe, being in need of many men for these ships\n(just about to go away to plunder and to fight), determines to have\nthem, this follows:--Strong, brutal men, are paid to watch for the poor\nof the Low-Caste, and seize them. These cruel wretches are armed with\nclubs and swords and small firearms. They are sent into the places\nwhere the poor and friendless abound, to seize any man whom they think\nthey can carry off without much _fuss_ [pung]. The poor cower and hide\naway; but these savage bands hunt them out, and bear off from wife and\nchildren, it may be, or from any chance of succour, some unfriended\nman to their dreadful dens. Here they are beaten, or put in irons, or\notherwise maltreated; or they may have been brutally knocked down when\ncaptured. When gangs [twi-sz] are collected, the victims are forced\non board the fire-ships to work in the dark, filthy holes, till,\ncompletely cowed, they are made to fire the great cannons, and to learn\nthe art of sailing and fighting!\n\nMany of these slaves of selfish, cruel force, never see their own\nland again, but are killed in fight, or by accident, or by disease.\nMultitudes sometimes perish by a single disaster. These are, however,\nfortunate. They have escaped the brutal whipping, the loathsome\ndiseases, the vile contagions, the inexpressible horrors of a continued\ncaptivity!\n\nBy these _press-gangs_ (so-called) the fire-ships are often supplied\nwith victims snatched from the unprotected Low-Castes; and the Upper\nenjoy the idle and luxurious security which they rob from the blood and\nlimbs of the friendless and obscure.\n\nThis unjust custom, frightful in every aspect, receives the approbation\nand applause of the Barbarians very generally, who say, \"Let the\nfellows thank their _stars_ that they can receive the Queen's money\nand fight _for_ her! Then look at the chance for _prize_!\" By _prize_,\nthey mean some pitiful fraction of the plunder taken. The _stars_ are\nreferred to, because the Barbarians fancy that everybody is born under\nthe influence of some star!\n\nI once noticed a painting, wherein a young man and maiden were\nrepresented as just leaving a Temple, where they had been married. Both\nwere nicely dressed, young and handsome, with roses and _nosegays_\n[bong-no]. They were walking arm-in-arm, happily engrossed in each\nother, when, from an alley, out springs a black-whiskered _bully_\n[kob-bo] with drawn cutlass, followed by a band of half-drunken, armed\nwretches, wearing the sea-garb of the Queen; he grasps the young man\nroughly by the collar--the picture attempts to show the indignant\nsurprise of the man, the clinging tenderness, fear, and horror of the\nmaid! But more striking to an observing stranger than even these, is\nthe merely passing curiosity of the people moving about! The scene to\nthem is not so novel. It is merely a _press-gang_ doing its lawful\nwork--if, by chance, a wrong sort of man be seized, it is none of the\naffair of these indifferent passers.\n\nProbably, the picture means to excite some compassionate interest by\nshowing how _very hard_ the press-gang system may work!\n\nIt would be vain to call the least attention to the matter, if the\nvictim were merely a common labourer; even the accessories of wife and\nchildren would not raise the scene into one of compassion. Nor does the\nrepresentation, for one moment, cause any reflection upon a _system_\nwherein _bullies_ [kob-toe] are employed to waylay and carry off\nunbefriended and unoffending men, at so much _per head_! For, besides\nthe regular pay, a reward is given for each victim captured!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nLONDON.\n\n\nLondon is the capital city of the British Empire. This is the style\nassumed by the English when they speak of their whole power. It is a\ncuriously constructed empire--in some respects like that of the old\nRomans, who, however, obtained their domination more directly by valour\nand wisdom--whereas the English rather by cunning, accident, and fraud.\nI say _accident_, because the immense regions possessed by virtue of\ndiscovery come under the term; and the vastest of all their distant\nprovinces, that of India, was obtained chiefly by fraud, assisted\nby force. I say _curiously_ constructed, because these Christians\nare content to wring from Heathen subjects their last bit of revenue\nutterly indifferent to the idolatries and to the miseries of the\npeople. If the Taxes come in and the wretched Hindoos starve, the main\nthing is to make the money and support 'our magnificent Empire' (as the\nEnglish have it). So the wildest excesses may go on, and the native\nchiefs, who are mere creatures of their distant masters, may oppress\nthe poor inhabitants; still, now and ever, the Master demands money;\nthis secures the yoke upon the neck of the subjugated, and enables the\nEnglish to make the vast Hindoo world a field where golden harvests\nare to be reaped. Boasting of liberty at home, there, a tyranny most\nodious is practised without pity. Then, the distant settlements where\nthe poor English Barbarians go, to cultivate the lands and to trade\nand plunder, are held in subjection chiefly to give places, with\nlarge revenues attached, to members of the Aristocracy, who must be\nprovided for in some way, as they can do nothing for themselves. So\nthis arrangement is very satisfactory, because the stupid Englishman\nabroad is just as devoted to the Upper-Caste and to the Superstition as\nat home, and feels honoured to have a \"scion of nobility\" foisted upon\nhim; and is amply repaid all the cost by the privilege of \"cooling his\nheels\" in an ante-room of the great man, when he holds his little Court.\n\nThe result is, that back upon London flows all the wealth which the\nEnglish Barbarians can contrive to get. Having these distant regions,\nand a greater trade across sea, London has become the greatest mart\nof all the Western tribes. It is, perhaps, as large and populous as\nour Pekin. It is the centre of Authority and of business; not only so,\nbut is the Metropolis of all the Christ-worshipping Tribes--or, as the\nBarbarians phrase it, of _Christendom_.\n\nThe population is 3,500,000, or thereabouts. The bulk of this multitude\nis poor, and a large fraction paupers. Yet the English boast that \"it\nis the richest city in the world!\"\n\nMost of the streets, courts, and buildings are very mean. In the\nwinter, nothing can equal the repulsiveness of the place. To the\nsqualor of beggary, the meanness of abject poverty, add the darkness\nand smoke; and the conditions seem unfit for human life. The rich shut\nthemselves within their houses, drop the heavy draperies over windows,\nstir up the fires, light the flaring flames of the curious gas-lights,\neat, drink, and sleep--shutting out from sight and sound that hideous\n_outside_. This is the time when the wretched in mind and body find\nexistence too great a burden, and cast it off with a shriek and a\nrush--plunging into the river or canal, or dashing beneath the wheels\nof the swift steam-chariots.\n\nAt all street-corners one notices the gin and beer shops. These are the\nhomes of the poor, who find in them the warmth and comfort which are\nwanting in their domestic haunts. These shops are closed at mid-night,\nwhen the half or wholly drunken loiterers must straggle off into\nthose holes and corners which _are_ their homes. Probably there is no\nfeature in barbaric life so curious and so characteristic as this--this\nGin-house of the poor. The Government licenses these places, and\nderives a great income. The Upper-Castes fatten upon this very thing.\nWhat can be said of it--what done with it?\n\nAnother remarkable object in the London streets is the _Street Arab_.\nThis is the name given to it by the Barbarians. But the Arab of Asia\n(if my reading be correct) is nothing like this creature. The London\nArab is of the degraded and thieving class--the very sediment--but\nnot yet fully weighted! In years a youth, but in feeling a ravening,\nsharp, adroit animal, quickened by the exercise of every instinct, and\ncool and expert from constant habit. He dodges in and out from under\nthe heads of horses and the wheels of vehicles; mounts a lamp-post, or\nanything by which he may get a sight; seizes the bundle which you may\nhave in hand; touches his uncombed front locks of hair, \"Please, Sir,\nle' me carry it, Sir;\" and trots before you, happy if he get twopence.\nNobody knows where he sleeps, or eats, nor how he lives, at all. I\nhave suddenly come upon two or more of them, when resting upon an iron\ngrating. Their naked feet and heads, their thin limbs hung about with\ndirty rags, and their teeth chattering with cold--but never a word of\ncomplaint--no seeming thought of anything hard or uncommon. These iron\nbars cover, sometimes, an area below, into which the warm, moist air\nof kitchens comes, and rises through the gratings, loaded with the\nsmell of cookery. Upon these bars will huddle together these half-naked\nand starved outcasts, happy in the partial warmth, and a hope of\nfood--for, if only a bone, or a bit of that steaming soup could by any\nchance be theirs! Poor girls, of this wretchedness born, shivering\nupon the wintry swept corners, timidly offer you matches [kin-fue],\n\"Please, Sir, buy\"--and will run along by your side, if you give them a\nhalf-glance, begging you for pity to buy. Human misery finds no greater\nexamples, nor any form of degradation deeper depths, than the lowest\nclass of London--nor of London only, but of all the great towns.\n\nThis degradation takes on every shape of misery and shame. Crime of\nevery kind breeds in it--disease, despair, and death! Is it inseparable\nfrom human existence--must excellence in humanity be only for the few?\n\nLondon has for Misery its Charities--for Crime its vast Stone prisons.\nThe latter are more accessible, and, for the offences of mere poverty,\nquite as desirable. Pauperism detests the alms-house--it hates\nsubordination; and will, sometimes, starve before it seeks the bread\nof scornful wealth. Extreme indigence hardens--softness is turned to\nstone--human instinct feels wronged. \"I wish work and pay, not idleness\nand pauper-bread.\" The cruel thing with the poor is, that at _first_,\nthere is not debasement. Work is sought--but, continued inability to\nfind work and honest bread, leads in the bad demon--which loves not,\ncares not, feels not--renders inhuman.\n\nIn walking the streets one feels the cold nature of the English\nBarbarians--one sees its exhibition everywhere. It is intensified by\nCaste divisions: there is no real sympathy. An Englishman shows in the\nstreets, and in all public places, the indifference of a brute. Nothing\nmoves him, nothing makes him laugh, smile, or give any sign of emotion.\nIn sports, nominally sportive, there is nothing of gaiety--only with\nthe Low-Castes very coarse and rough brutishness; and with the Upper\na repulsive cynicism. This mood gives to the life of the streets no\npleasing animation--only, at best, mere animal movement, as if each\nbeast was intent upon his own particular hunger. At the Play there is\nno show of genuine enjoyment--and the dance (somebody said to me once)\nmight be a dance of Death, so far as any lively pleasure appears.\n\nThe _Hansom Cab_--of which there are thousands--is a singular and\ncharacteristic thing. It is a vehicle of two wheels, drawn by one\nhorse, and carries two passengers. The Barbarians, intent upon gain,\nallow the driver to urge his horse at speed through the crowded\nstreets, giving no other warning than _hi-hi_! Everybody must look out\n_at his own peril_; for life and limb are unimportant compared with\nspeed in business. One would not credit this--but as I have been nearly\nrun over by these drivers more than once, not hearing the _hi-hi_! I\ncan vouch for the existence of these privileged vehicles. The use of\nthem is based upon the same rule, which allows of so many other things,\nto us inhuman or unjust--to say--that 'the convenience of trade' is\nparamount to trifling risks of life, limb, or soundness of abstract\nmorality.\n\nAnother public chariot for passengers is the _Omnibus_. These are very\nnumerous on the great thoroughfares. It is drawn by two horses, and\nwill hold twelve or more inside and fourteen outside, upon the top.\nThese are licensed by the law, and convey people a long distance for\na small sum. The name is from the Roman, and means a bus (kiss) for\nall--a ridiculous term for which I can give no explanation, unless,\nas women and men ride in them promiscuously, some of the sly and\ncoarse humour of the Barbarians may be meant. I refer, however, to the\ncarriage, to give an illustration of street life, and of the English\nbearishness [che-liftze]. I have seen women and children waiting at a\ncorner in the mud and rain, for the _'Bus_, and when it has stopped, I\nhave seen men rudely elbow themselves to the front and enter upon the\nunoccupied seats, leaving the women to the inclemency of winter, or to\nthe rain and sleet. And these not the _Roughs_, but gentlemen. This,\ntoo, one would scarcely believe, if one did not see.\n\nThe _police_ [ki-ti] of London is noted for its stupidity; its\nmembers are the perpetual _butt_ [la-phe] of farces and plays in the\nTheatres. Yet the liberty and the good name of the citizens are at\ntheir mercy. If a stranger be hustled and mobbed, it will be well for\nhim to get out of the affair without any call for the police, for if\none of these should come up, he will be as likely to pounce upon the\ninnocent and injured as upon the wrong-doer. And he likes to make his\n_arrest_ appear guilty before the magistrate--_he_ is not mistaken.\nIn selecting policemen, rather strength of body than any moral or\nmental qualification is looked for. And the theory seems to be that\none cannot afford to pay for intelligent men, where merely the liberty\nand good name of the individual is concerned. Here again, \"better that\nthe particular person should suffer than that too much money should be\npaid;\" especially as the Police are not likely to be _hard_ upon the\nupper-Castes. To these they can be conveniently deaf, dumb, and blind.\n\nOne wonders, looking along the interminable extent of mean streets,\nto see the endless shops. It looks as if everybody had something to\nsell; and where the buyers can be who knows? You may watch some of\nthese places for hours, and you will not see a soul enter or depart.\nLook in, and very likely some old man or woman is drowsing away, if in\nsummer time, behind a paltry litter of old stuffs, the whole not worth\na year's living; or, if in winter, half-perishing with cold, waiting\nfor customers who never come. And these waifs [dri-tze] of a forgotten\ntrade linger on, in old age, eating hungrily the husks of former\ntraffic, which new ways have destroyed. London is an enormous shop with\na West End of dwellings; these, however, not by any means shopless. It\nis a marvel. Thousands and thousands of mean shops, yet supporting the\ntens of thousands which live by them. One asks how any fair profit can\ndo this. You will see a display of rusty goods, of tawdry ornaments, of\ndirty books, of mere rubbish; and if you venture inside you will hurry\nout again. The creatures inside are as unattractive as the wares. Do\nyou believe these are places of honest dealing?\n\nBut in what are called respectable tradesmen's houses, profits must\nbe little short of plunder--the business is so small. Yet the English\nBarbarians, of certain classes, seem to take to this mode of living\nupon the community with a hawk-like keenness. The difference between\nthe price of an article of food, whether bought first hands, or after\nit has passed through these intermediaries, is a difference as of\none-half to the whole--that is, the price is doubled!\n\nThese petty tradesmen glean their livings from the poor, who cannot\nhelp themselves; but, in truth, the common feeling is on all hands,\n\"Let us plunder, and be plundered.\" It is merely a question of securing\na good share.\n\nLondon, therefore, not wanting in a certain air of greatness in\nsome parts, really expresses very clearly the traits of the English\nBarbarians. It is gloomy, morose, huckstering, repulsive. Huge it is,\nlike the English barbaric power; but incoherent, uninformed, unlovely,\nwithout the beauty of refinement.\n\nStill, in the purpose of the Sovereign Lord, one may guess the use of\nthis great centre of barbaric influence--it is to beat down the distant\nand worse tribes beyond the great seas. As one sort of predatory\ncreature devours another, so these Barbarians destroy worse types\nof men than themselves, and prepare the way for human advancement.\nWhether, however, they shall themselves ever emerge into a noble life,\nis a curious inquiry.\n\nThe _West End_ is that part where the High-Castes reside when in the\nMetropolis. It is the seat of Palaces, of Courts, of better built\nstreets, and of the best Parks and ornamental grounds. Here the\nTheatres and revelries are; the great dinners, the Routs, the Dances,\nand the stir of High life. Here, in the Parks, the grand dames air\nthemselves, their poodles, and servants. Here, on horseback, they\nastonish onlookers by the display of figure, and, on foot, by a show\nof head-dress and draperies, and bright eyes and fashionable forms.\nLuxury, idleness, show, frivolity, mock the wretchedness which despairs\nand dies, or robs and cheats in not distant back slums [gna-zti].\nStill, along these costly rows of equipages and richly-attired women\nand men, on whose persons may be single gems which would give bread to\nthousands, one looks in vain for what would give a human and pleasing\ntouch. If you see a lovely face, it might as well be at a funeral. The\nwhole spectacle is cold and lifeless; the horses only have animation,\nand they are kept down to the tamest possible step. The world cannot\nshow finer animals, nor wealthier owners, nor more luxurious idlers,\nnor more unattractive human beings. Joy is unknown, and any touch\nof natural sentiment, along the long line of devotees of wearisome\nTime-killers, may be looked for in vain.\n\nWhen I first walked about the streets, I found myself the victim of\nBarbarian insolence. My dress attracted rude notice, and I soon adopted\nthe common garb. This, however, only partially removed observation--for\nmy features were different. However, a longer use accustomed me to\nrudeness, and enabled me to let it pass unnoticed. One part of the\ntown, particularly, appeared to be infested with women, who accosted\nme and insisted upon walking with me. I could not for some time\nunderstand this; but since, I have been informed. The neighbourhood\nof the Theatres--in fact, many parts of the West End--are the haunts\nof these poor creatures, many of whom seem to be but little more than\nchildren. On one occasion a well-dressed young girl, as I was leaving\nthe Play, smilingly spoke to me, and asked the time! I took out my\nwatch, which was worn in my fob, and holding it up to the gaslight to\nsee the hour, it was snatched from my hand. I merely caught sight of\na person vanishing round a corner. The girl exclaimed, \"What a pity,\"\nand put her hand gently on my arm. I, however, moved away quickly; but\nall trace of watch and robber was gone, and the young woman too! This\nwould not happen to me now. I did not then know of the state of things\nin the _centre of Christendom_! Of course I was robbed on several\noccasions, and in many ways, and shortly found that I must look upon\neverybody as a rascal, as the English do.\n\nBut perhaps there is nothing in London so exasperating as the\n_Lodging-house keeper_. This is a creature not unknown to other\nregions, but reserved for its most perfect and exquisite finish for the\nMetropolis of the World (as the English like to call London).\n\nThis being starves you, freezes you, cheats you, waits upon you, steals\nfrom you, lies to you, flatters you, and backbites you; reads your\nprivate papers, has keys for all your boxes and drawers, and a complete\ninventory of all your effects. She chooses from your handkerchiefs,\nsmoothes her hair with your brushes, scents it with your perfumes,\n\"makes herself beautiful\" at your toilet. She examines your boots, and\nfinds a pair which you \"will never miss,\" for her _James_. She brushes\nyour trowsers, and takes care of any loose change. She waits at your\ntable, counts the oranges, and thinks she will try one.\n\nWhen you ask for that _pie_, she has given it to the dog--\"I thought\nyou were done with it, Sir.\" She cracks a window pane, and charges it\nto you in the bill. She eats your bread, drinks your beer, _tastes_\nyour wine; and charges you a shilling for a pinch of salt. She demands\npay for coals you have not burned, and for gas you have not used. She\ngives you sheets that are worn out, and makes you pay the price of new\nwhen you stick your toes through them. She demands the _wash_ for\ncoverings which you have not soiled, and for _tidys_ that were never\ntidy. She has a lot of cracked cheap glasses and crockery, which she\nmakes you pay \"for cracking, Sir\"--as she has already made others many\ntimes before. In truth, these are invaluable to her--\"she get new ones,\nnot she\"! (as she says to her drudge of all work).\n\nYou pay for clean table-linen and towels weekly (and weakly)--but if\nyou ask for a fresh table-cloth, \"I have a friend to dine\"--you get it,\nand a charge for it _extra_. If you intimate that you _could_ not have\nhad \"so much butter\"--you are reminded that you are speaking to a lady,\nwho has been accustomed to have _gentlemen_ in her rooms!\n\nYou sleep on \"hobbles,\" and are blotched in a curious manner. You hint\nto the servant that you have seen _something_ as well as felt; but\n\"nothing of that sort was ever in my house.\" At last, when you find it\nquite impossible to satisfy the ever-increasing rapacity, you \"think\nyou will leave.\" You are very forcibly reminded that you are bound to\n\"a month's notice, Sir.\" And, happy to get off any way, this you waive\nand pay for. Nor do you flinch when, on exhibiting the final account,\n\"my lady\" has recorded a list of casualties, very startling:--\n\n                                                    (Mental notes:--)\n Towel-horse broken                                  always broken.\n Chair-back ditto                                    ditto.\n Door-plate cracked                                  ditto.\n Table-cover stained                                 old.\n Carpet ditto                                        old, worthless.\n Walls injured by boxes                              old knocks.\n Candlestick broken                                  servant.\n Postages, and servant for letters                  (paid).\n Blacking, salt, and pepper                         (omitted and always\n                                                     charged).\n Wash of coverings, toilets, and counterpanes.\n\nYou glance at the foot, pay it. You think all is done. But \"my lady\"\nexpects a \"slight gratuity, Sir; not for myself, of course, but for\nNancy!\" I should add that this harpy is a devotee, and is as punctual\nat prayers as at prey!\n\nOne, however, soon finds a change of place is no change of fate. The\npickings and stealings may take a little different form, but the result\nis the same. The only thing is, to get for your money cleanliness and\ncomfort; estimate the whole cost, and consider the plunder a part of\nit--for you will not escape. The _Lodging House_ is only typical. All\nare preyed upon and prey upon. It is the rule of barbaric life, and\n_Caste_ makes it inevitable. The low think it no robbery to get a share\nof the plunder enjoyed by the rich. There is, in the general state of\nthings, a rough instinct of justice in it--only innocent people also\nsuffer.\n\nIf you live in one of the huge buildings called Hotels, you are no\nbetter off. Here, every mouthful is counted; you cannot breathe (so to\nsay) without paying for it. If a waiter look at you, he will expect a\n_gratuity_ [_ti-tin_].\n\nAfter you have paid everything which an experienced and greedy\ningenuity can think of, as you are about to leave, the servants will\nobsequiously open and stand at doors, hold and brush your hat (already\n_brushed_ bare), catch up some trifle, and generally get in your way,\nto force gratuities out of your good-nature. If you, at length, reach\nthe vehicle called for you, before you can open the door of it, up\nwill start, as from the ground, a miserable creature, who intercepts\nyour motion, adroitly opening the door for you, and then, when you are\nseated, stands staring directly into your face, with his hand still on\nthe door-handle, awaiting a gratuity. You have buttoned up your coat,\nyour gloves are on, it is cold; but you cannot refuse the demand.\n\nYou are finally off; you arrive at your new quarters. Before you can\nwink, up starts a first cousin [tw-in-ti] of him who has just stared\nat you, who, in his turn, seizes hold of the door-handle, and shows\nin every motion that he has seized you too, at least to the extent of\n_sixpence_. You step out; he touches his hair (he has no hat); you try\nnot to see him; but impossible--the pennies must come.\n\nBut why attempt to delineate these endless methods of prey. The poor\nwretches who live by these miserable shifts are innumerable and\neverywhere. One does not begrudge the _pennies_, but detests the\nnuisance, and the debasement which it demonstrates.\n\nLondon is an undesirable place of residence, unless for the rich, and\nto them only for a few months in the year. But it is full of objects of\nstudy to him who cares to know anything of barbaric life, or who wishes\nto investigate the records and literature of the Western tribes.\n\nAll great cities are much alike; it is the different aspect of human\nlife which is the noticeable thing. Unless, on the whole, a great city\nexhibits humanity in a pleasing condition, it is a failure, however\nrich it may be. London, which was described one hundred and fifty\nyears ago as a \"Province of Houses,\" certainly contains an immense\npopulation bare of attractive features. No doubt much must be put down\nto climate and fuel. The former is foggy, cold, dark, and disheartening\nfor the larger part of the year; and the latter, by its foul gas\n[ptrut] and smoke, makes the fog and cloudy air so obscure as to give\nan unearthly gloom. The poor feel not only the gnawing of hunger but\nthe nipping frost, unrelieved by any smiles in earth or sky. The mud of\nthe streets is like a nasty grease, and one walks or crosses the ways\nin terror of befoulment. The clothes and the face are exposed not only\nto this, but also to the defiling smoke which drops a steady drizzle\n[kri-tze] of black atoms upon everything.\n\nPoor shivering creatures--men, women, and children--are at street\ncrossings and other places, incessantly sweeping away so much of the\nmud as may enable pedestrians to pass with less weight of nastiness\nto boots or skirts. These, often very old, or lame, or half-starved\nand ragged, piteously expect a penny. I have often watched the little\ngirl or boy, or old tottering man, and seen the hurrying passers, on\nand on, the stream ceaseless, yet have rarely seen a single penny\ngiven. I have sometimes put in my outside pocket some copper coins\nto have at hand; and when I have given to one of these sweepers, the\nthanking look was well worth the petty trouble; it also showed clearly\nthat the gift was not too common. How these victims of poverty live,\nwhere they cover their misery from the wintry cold, I cannot guess. I\nused to notice one very old and almost imbecile who swept at a place\nwhere I crossed frequently. He would stand motionless under a thick,\nscrubby tree which stood just at the corner of the streets, clinging\nto its shelter, slight as it was, for protection from wind and rain,\nand barely touching his head with his finger with a bow when people\npassed. Occasionally, slowly, and with limbs stiff and back hardly bent\nto toil, grubbing across the way with his muddy broom, but never giving\nother sign of vitality. I missed his silent figure one day; another\nwretch had stepped into his heritage, [qua-ti] and stood beneath the\nscrubby tree--the old, silent, patient sufferer had found a pauper's\ngrave at last.\n\nAkin to these (indeed cousins-german) are the old creatures who sit\nat street corners, or by the way-sides, selling trifles, which nobody\nbuys. Through the long, cold days, huddled into a heap, and looking\nlike a pile of rags with a red face a-top, motionless, will one of\nthese sit, bleering and winking with rheumy eyes at the juiceless\nfruit, or handful of nuts, or ancient cakes, or nasty sweets, displayed\nupon her little board. If by chance you happen to curiously turn your\neyes upon this strange object, some start of vitality appears, but\nvanishes as you pass on. Who buys, who eats; what can possibly come of\nthis strange traffic? Yet you will see these human things, day after\nday, sitting, one would think, despairingly, awaiting the buyers who\nnever come. How fine a thing it would be for the idle rich, who like a\nnew sensation, to go about the streets, accompanied by a servant, and\nbuy of these patient crones [ko-tse] a good part of their daily store!\n\nWhen I first walked about the great places of the city, I was surprised\nto see very many miserable men punished (as I supposed) by the\n_Cangue_. They had suspended to their necks two boards, one in front\nand one behind. Upon these were curious devices. Horses, women, great\nfires burning, ships blowing up, and the like. Perpetually walking\nto and fro, just to the measured distance, and never once sitting\ndown, never once speaking, nor being spoken to, these creatures, thus\naccoutred, walked dismally right in the garbage of the gutters. No one,\nby any chance, ever noticed them, nor by any chance did they ever do\nother than, with slow and limping gait, keep up the march of doleful\ndismalness! For long I puzzled over these ragged apparitions; after\nmany moons I found that they were merely stalking advertisements!\n[muun-shi].\n\nI might give many other illustrations of life in London, differing\nfrom what is known to us. The human dregs are truly dreadful. Their\nhaunts are indescribable. Many settle upon the oozy and slimy river\nbank, when the tide is out, seeking anything which perchance may\nhave been washed up. Wading in a filth which covers the feet and\nbefouls the whole tattered creature, this being, nicknamed _mud-lark_\n[pho-ul-sti], becomes an outcast to all decency. Others prowl about\nthe ash-heaps, and sift and pick over any heaps of rubbish, carefully\ngathering from garbage, bones, rags, anything which can give the merest\npittance. It must be certain that human degradation can go no deeper\nwhen to debasing and starving poverty is added drunkenness, loathsome\nbrutality, violence, and crime.\n\nPossibly the greatest city of the Barbarians is not worse than the\nworst of some portions of a great city with us; nor should I refer\nemphatically to the wretchedness of London were it not for the boastful\nignorance manifested by Barbarian writers and literati. These always\nspeak of the pr\u00ebeminence of English civilization--of the grand and\nhumanizing influence of their true religion--of the wealth, the\nliberty, and the happiness of the people! No other tribe is so humane,\nso just, so brave, so wise, so free, so prosperous, so contented and\nhappy!\n\nIn the face of these declarations, which are to be met with on all\nsides, London is a marvel! Nor London only, other cities are more\nmarvellous; one wonders what the standard must be, by which is tested\nthis boasted pr\u00ebeminence. If by _other_ Western Barbarian life, and\ncompared to that, truly superior, then what must be the condition at\nlarge of the Western tribes?\n\nThere is a nuisance common enough with us about the streets; and in\nLondon it takes every shape. I mean street music. Besides the troops,\nwhich infest public places, startling you with a crashing outburst\nof noise from many brass instruments, there are mendicants, of all\nages and both sexes. The halt, the blind, come singing in the most\ndoleful manner, unaccompanied; and others making the night hideous with\nsqueaking wind-pipes, or noisy things of some sort. After annoying you\nfor a long time, one of these will perhaps boldly knock at your door,\nand demand a gratuity. Some of these creatures blacken themselves, and\nappear in the courts and squares singing and playing not too decently.\nSome poor woman, with babes in a kind of basket pushed along on wheels,\nwill try to gain sympathy and pennies by screaming out some woful\nstrain which nobody comprehends, and which grates upon the ear like\nrasping iron. Sometimes a miserable wretch, shivering with cold, will\nstand before the bright, warm doors of a drinking place, and sing his\nfeeble note of woe. The most dreadful objects will be those horribly\ndeformed, who, crooked and distorted out of human shape contrive to get\nalong in some strange device of wagon, pushed by their own stumps of\nhands or feet. Generally these affect to play upon something, no matter\nwhat, and drag on an existence too wretched to think of.\n\nBut why dwell upon these lowest strata of human existence. It shows\nout on all hands. Among the gilded idlers of the West End, on the\nvery porticoes of grand Temples. Luxury and pride drive, with mien\nunconscious of human want and woe; unconscious of \"the common lot\"\nawaiting all; almost over the very bodies of these to whom life is so\ndeep a darkness.\n\nLondon in its sparkling splendours laughs and makes merry. Within\nits great Parks, in the summer months, musical birds make the air\nmelodious, and flowering shrubs, and fine trees and verdure, give\nbeauty and rest to thousands of the poor--but not to the lowest. These\nslink away into the fouler haunts, or spread themselves over the\ngreen country, seeking new sources of pitiful gain! In the mid-summer\nthe best of London looks almost cheerful; and a sky more pure, and a\nsun-light which, though not brilliant, _is_ soft and warm, render life\ntolerable to the poor. For the rich and idle, they go out of the City\nand leave it, as they say, _empty_--for those who remain are _nobodies_\n[cham-tsi]. Yes, the millions left to toil are nothing. Still, the\nmagnificence of the High-Caste flowers immediately upon that toiling\nmass--from _it_ grows all the spreading splendour which regards it not.\nThe glowing flame cares nothing for the black coal; nor is the money\nsoiled which passes through the hands of despised indigence. London gay\nand brilliant, glows and glitters upon its dung-heap--as a luminous\nvapour flashes and flits over a putrescent carcass.\n\nPerhaps one should not be too critical, nor expect other than these\ninconsistencies in humanity. Misery will be largely its _own_ cause.\nGreat populations do not herd together without shocking inequalities\nof condition; yet, the reflection will arise, Is not the _boast_ of\nrefinement and civilization too much for patience--would not humility\nbe better? The boast means self-content--humility would mean a steady\nwork for improvement. One sees not, nor really cares to see; the other\nsees and feels, and wishes to remove what gives a sense of humiliation\nand of pain.\n\nSplendid London may disregard the blackness of the East End (as the\npoorest quarter is called), and think itself a good _Christian_ to\nshun it as a place of horror; but, to my _pagan_ wisdom, it seems\nindispensable to devote that money and energy to the civilization of\nthe English Barbarians, which is now sent to \"_the benighted heathen_.\"\nThese, no doubt, have the poor and the degraded, the black spots of\nmoral imbecility; nor would one object to any really benevolent\nenterprise, though not too rational. But the missionary [kan-te]\nspirit rises so distinctly from an ignorant self-sufficiency and\nblindness, a merely superstitious notion of a thing to be done as any\nrite or ceremony is to be done--_for the good of the doer_--that it\nis impossible to have much respect for it. Then, too, the whole thing\nshapes into a machine, by the working of which men are to live and get\nhonours and places. If a truly grand benevolence moved the people, it\nwould be impossible to overlook _the Heathen at home_.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nSOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS.\n\n\nIt is the business of a wise man (as our illustrious _Confutzi_\nand _Menzi_ say) to seek the _conditions_ of the visible forms of\nthings--whether the things be those which we see, or only those which\ntake form in the mind. The conditions are what the Barbarians call\n_laws_. We see that the use of a certain earth will enrich some soils,\nand impoverish others; we examine into the cause; we try to discover\nthe conditions which make this difference. We know that, generally and\nbroadly, the elements are the same, but they are differently combined.\nThe Western Barbarians are of the same race with ourselves--inherently\nthe general nature is the same. What difference of combination of\nsimilar elements has produced results so dissimilar?\n\nIn the mighty East, where civilization goes back into the most distant\nand dim antiquity, _the laws_ which underlie organized governments\nand customs, and which give form and life to communities, are very\ndifferent, and sometimes antagonistic. It is certain, therefore, that\nman, really the same everywhere, has, in the course of ages, evolved\nfrom his own and surrounding nature very different forms of social\nlife in the East and in the West. Man and nature radically the same,\nhave, in different conditions, grown and put forth very dissimilar\nshapes of growth. The tree and the fruit are rooted in similar soil,\nhave grown in similar air, sun, and rain. Even the trees are not wholly\nunlike, nor the fruit; yet, most unlike, when duly considered; and,\nwhen regarded with a view to usefulness and to perpetuation, _one_ may\ndemand the axe, and the _other_ only the nice pruning-knife [quin-tse].\nBut a difference so great implies a different seed-germ--not\nnecessarily; for, from the same germ, one may have a bitter, even a\npoisonous fruit, which finer culture can make sweet and healthful.\n\nIf we assume, then, the same germ, whence so great diversity? In my\npoor mind, when, among the Barbarians, sad and bewildered by the\ndisorder, confusion, and complexity, this question tediously presented\nitself--\"Is man a creature of chance--is there no perfect rule?\" I\nwould say, \"Is his _growth_ fortuitous like plants, beginning with\nsimilar germs and yet dissimilar--so, growing according to the hidden\ndifferences and the differing circumstances? Is there no common\nstandard--no fixed measure--no absolute truth?\" But, in my poor\nthought, I also said, \"The Sovereign Lord lives in his children, and\nmoral truth (_divine illumination_) must be. _It is simply true_,\nand can be no other. Human _forms_ of social being must be measured\nby it; and, however complexed and confused, _are so measured_, and\nwill not long exist if radically inconsistent. Yet these forms may be\nbad without being wholly rootless, and grow _deformed_, strange, and\nnoxious.\"\n\nIn looking upon the disorderly and complex features of Barbarian\nlife, two things prominently strike my poor mind. One is, _a restless\nactivity_, accompanied with love of personal distinction and admiration\nof strength. The other, is the singular _position of women_. To the\nformer, may be charged the selfish greed, the callous indifference, the\ndelight in forays and plunder.\n\nTo the latter, that aspect of dissolute disorder, that curious\ncomplexity of ideas and principles, which render the whole Barbarian\nSociety a marvel--I liked to have said _a disgust_--to one unaccustomed\nto it.\n\nThe position of women, as it affects _the family_, no doubt has an\nall-pervading influence--if that position be wrong, we have, at once, a\ngrand source of evil.\n\nHow far the _great Superstition_, super-imposed upon the _olden_\nIdolatry (dark and cruel) may have deepened the shades of Barbaric\nnature, and strengthened its old admiration of force and rapine, may be\nonly surmised. Certain it is that the Jewish _Jah_ is not unlike the\n_Odin_ of these tribes; and (as I have said) the gentle Christ-god,\nhimself a Jew worshipper of Jah, has been received only as subordinate;\nin fact, a _Sacrifice_ by _Jah_ made to himself to appease himself! A\ncharacter, in fine, not _strong enough_ for these fierce tribes.\n\nWe have the _government and the family_ resting upon a different\nbasis in the West from what they rest upon in the East. In the West,\nit is difficult to say if there be _any rule_ upon which either\nsecurely reposes. In the East, the _rule_ is as clear, and as clearly\nrecognized, and as undoubtedly _obeyed_, as _any_ rule can be. The\nexistence of the Sovereign Lord is not more certainly admitted, and\nhis authority not more implicitly submitted to. This is the rule of\nOBEDIENCE.\n\nBut aside from principles which control comprehensive forms, like the\nFamily and Government, there are secondary growths, usages (perhaps not\nreferable to any marked rule), which have had powerful influence. For\ninstance, the mode of trying persons suspected of Crime, appears to my\npoor mind to be very fantastic and irrational. The Barbarians, however,\nboast of the superiority of their way over all other tribes, ancient or\nmodern.\n\nWhen a crime has been committed, and some one, suspected, has been\narrested, he is brought before a Judge, whose duty it is to see if\nthere be good reasons for the arrest. The very first thing, we should\nthink, would be to ask the accused to give any explanation he may\nwish. Not at all; he is told to say _nothing_; for if he do it will be\nrecorded and may go to _his hurt_. How to his hurt unless he be guilty?\nHow it may be that the accused could, at once, explain everything--but\nno--the officers who have made the arrest wish to work out a _theory_\nof their own; and the Judge, listening to these officers, who are\nuneducated, rude, and often at work for a large prize, commits the\naccused to prison to be tried over again, really, at a future day,\nby some other Judge. Meantime everybody who, upon the theory of the\nofficers, is imagined to know anything, is ordered to give security\nthat they will appear at the next trial, and say what they know. And\nif a witness cannot give this security (frequently the case with the\npoor), he is also thrust into prison. In this manner persons, who have\nbeen so unfortunate as to be fixed upon by these ignorant officers, are\ntreated like the accused, and put to great inconvenience and sometimes\nsuffering, either in themselves, or their families, or affairs. This\ngoes on--the next trial is postponed, delay after delay, whilst the\nofficers are working out _their theory_; and finally the accused is\ndischarged and the witnesses also, the whole disgraceful proceeding\nbeing a _blunder_, in which innocent people have been punished as\n_criminal_, and the _Criminal_ has _escaped_! A natural and simple\nexamination of the accused, when first brought before the Judge, would\nhave saved all this loss, suffering, and shame! Such an absurdity can\nonly be to the advantage of the guilty!\n\nA man may be caught under circumstances of guilt so certain that there\nis no _rational_ hypothesis of innocence. Yet, with the very blood and\nproperty of the murdered perhaps upon him, surprised, red-handed in\nthe very act, he will be treated as if he were merely _suspect_; _will\nbe cautioned to say nothing_; will have every chance and opportunity\nto escape by reason of the unaccountable mode of procedure. For he is\nstill innocent. Such is the hypothesis; and disregarding the obvious\nand simple way of asking for an explanation consistent with innocence\n(when guilt would be doubly manifest), the other ridiculous hypothesis\nis maintained, if possible, and the whole community and many innocent\npeople are afflicted and tortured with the most minute and painful\ninvestigations (having perhaps no sort of relation to the matter), to\nsee if some doubt may not arise _somehow_, not as to the guilt, but as\nto some parts of the case as _imagined_ to be!\n\nThus, _theories_ of guilt are to be established when the fact is\n_patent_, if one will simply look at the proofs immediately at hand!\n\nIn this case just supposed, too, there is no trial at all of the _man_\nso clearly seen to be guilty. Twelve men are convened by a sort of\ninferior Judge, first to see how the dead man came to be dead--it is\ncertain as anything can well be! Yet this kind of Court must go through\nthe long, tedious, and painful inquiry, _how_ the man died. Witnesses\nare dragged from home, from their pursuits, ruined may be; the whole\ncommunity horrified, and the twelve men kept from home and business,\nand shocked by the most disgusting examinations of the dead! This whole\nprocess seems rather designed to give fees and business to the petty\nJudge and officers who compose this singular tribunal.\n\nBut when this _sham_ Court has got through, the accused meantime, and\nthe witnesses, are still awaiting the real inquiry, which may be put\noff for many weeks.\n\nWhen, after tedious delays, _twenty-four_ petty judges, assisted by\nan officer, having made up their minds to formally charge the accused\nwith the crime, he is brought before a Judge, who is now for the first\ntime to really try the man, another curious thing occurs. The Judge\nis not trusted alone to proceed--he must have twelve little Judges,\nand several Lawyers, to assist him. The little judges are the JURY,\nnot selected for knowledge nor excellency, but any twelve men who can\nbe readily got. Generally they are very poor represervatives of even\nthe average wisdom and morality. They know nothing of law, nor of the\nCourt, nor are they in the least competent to undergo the complex,\ntedious, and artificial _trial_ to which they are about to be put, as\nwell as the accused. However, the business of these twelve is _not_ to\nlook directly at the man and at the clear evidence against him--which\nmight be within even their competency--but they are sworn upon the\n_Sacred Writings and by Jah_ (under severe penalties) to try the\naccused according _to the Law and the evidence_. Now, the Lawyers and\nthe Judge determine as to the law, and the twelve men must obey them as\nto _that_--the twelve, however, are to determine as to the evidence.\nThis means--they are to see and hear the witnesses, examine the\nobjects of proof (which may take many days); keep all the statements,\nconflicting, confused, or other; hear all that the Lawyers may say;\nwatch the demeanour of the witnesses, and of the accused--and they\nmust take the _Case_ as presented and offered to them, however absurd\nmuch of it may be--and, finally, after all, they are not to take _this\nEvidence_ (as it is called) to judge it for _themselves_--no, they must\ntake it _under the direction of the Judge_. They are sworn _to try_\naccording to the Law and the evidence; but _evidence_ means _legal_\nevidence! and the Judge (aided by the Lawyers) directs the twelve men\nas to what is _evidence_. Under these conditions, one may judge as to\nthe usefulness of this Jury--unless as a contrivance for the torturing\nof the innocent and the clearing of the guilty!\n\nI was present and examined this matter--for from the common boast of\nthis excellent Jury-mode of _trial_, I wished to see with my own mind.\n\nAt length, the twelve men being confined, so that _they_ cannot escape,\nin a sort of box; the Judge and the Lawyers being in their places,\nattired in the absurd wigs and black gowns [phe-ty-kos] (somebody once\nwhispered in my ear, black-guards) [kon-di-to-ri]; the accused is\nordered to stand up. The charge of murder is read;--confused by so much\nbarbarous jargon, that no one but the Judge and the Lawyers understand\nit--in fact, oftentimes do not understand it--and the criminal often\nescapes trial because the _proper_ jargon has not been used. This\n_mixed tongue_ is the only one allowed in these trials, and must be\ntaken from the fountain of Wisdom (as the Law book is called containing\nit). The speech is uncertain, only known to the Lawyers; and a mistake\nspoils the whole charge. Well, after more or less wrangling among the\nLawyers, the charge finally stands. I must explain; there are _two\nsides_ of Lawyers--one (hired to do so), by _every means_ in its power\ntries to get the accused discharged, and is helped to do this by all\nthe machinery of the trial--the other merely watches the proceedings,\nand sees that they are not too absolutely controlled by the other\nside. The latter, also, open and state the matter, and conduct it;\nbut neither side works simply to obtain the truth. On the side of\nthe accused, if guilty, the truth is _not_ wanted; and, on the other\nside, there is no interest in the matter which greatly moves. But the\ninterest for the accused may be not merely to gratify, in some cases,\npowerful relatives, but to obtain as large _a sum_ of money as the\nLawyers can get--which, where life is at stake, may be all the accused\nhas now, or may, if discharged, acquire. In fact, in cases of robbery,\nthe Lawyers for the accused may have received their compensation from\nthe very plunder!\n\nThe accused says to the charge either _Guilty_ or _Not Guilty_! This\nis a mere form. Then the names of the twelve men are called over,\nto see that none have got away--for it is a hateful and disgusting\nbusiness often, wherein they _instinctively_ feel they really have no\nfunction--and yet enforced upon them, often to their actual great loss\nand suffering.\n\nHow the scene fairly opens. The twelve little judges in their box;\nthe big one sitting aloft, with pig-tail-ear-flapper wig; the Lawyers\nin pig-tail wigs and gowns; the officers of the Court; the witnesses,\ncowering and afraid; the accused in his high, strong cage (or box); and\nthe spectators, friends, relatives, associates of the witnesses and of\nthe accused--women and men--crowding in the dark corners of the Hall of\ntrial.\n\nThe Lawyers call and examine the witnesses. These are not permitted\nto tell the truth in their own way at all. They are sworn upon\nthe _Sacred Writings_, upon pain of penalties of the Law, and the\ndreadful fear of the awful Jah and Hell, _to speak the truth, the\nwhole truth, and nothing but the truth_! Now, the truth which they\nare to speak must be that _sort_ of truth which the Lawyers and the\nJudge determine upon to hear--not by any means _that_ truth which the\nwitness, in his simplicity, is about to utter! Here, then, an honest\nand conscientious witness is likely to be at once bewildered; but a\ncallous, self-possessed one, who does not intend to say one word more\nthan he can help, finds himself doing exactly what the Lawyers and the\nCourt understand by the oath--that is, to speak _for_ the one side or\nthe other; _not for truth_!\n\nConsider the position of a witness, perhaps a timid woman, or an\ninexperienced person, never before called upon to take the _awful\noath_, never before in such a place! Confronted, made to stand\nup, _thrust_ without respect, sometimes rudely and with positive\ndisrespect; treated, in fact, as if a party to the crime, though\nperfectly ignorant of anything excepting of some chance _link_ required\nin the _theory_ of the charge--thrust forward into the gaze of the\nJudge, of the whole assembly. Every eye is fastened upon the trembling\nwitness. She is ordered in a rough tone to hold up her hand, to take\nthe _oath_, _to kiss the Sacred Writings_! What with the crowd, the\nnovel and painful position, by this time the poor woman, when asked a\nquestion, can scarcely speak. The old, half-deaf Judge, turns his awful\nbe-wigged head to her, raises his ear-flapper and says, \"Speak louder,\nwitness; I can't hear you.\" An officer bawls out, \"Silence!\" and, not\nunlikely, the poor witness fairly collapses, faints, and she is allowed\nto be seated.\n\nThe Lawyers examine the witnesses, and if one begins to say something\nvery damaging, if possible, will interrupt him; or, by and by, will\ninsinuate some vile charge against him, to destroy his character with\nthe hearers--not that there be any truth in the insinuation, but merely\nto effect the purpose of a vile _minion_ paid to defend, perhaps, a\nnotorious offender!\n\nThus the _trial_ proceeds; every effort is made on the side of the\naccused (which is the active side) to mislead, to confuse, to bewilder.\nThe Law, read from big books, is constantly referred to, now to stop a\nwitness in what he is about to say; now to get something _already_ said\nscratched off from the minds of the twelve men; and now to take the\nopinion of the Judges as to whether this or that should, or should not,\nbe heard by the Jury.\n\nAll these things go on day after day, not at all because there is any\ndoubt as to the guilt of the accused, but because by these confused\nand interminable proceedings, the Lawyers who act for him expect to\nget him discharged--and discharged, declared by the twelve men to be\n_not guilty_! This is the great point; for, if this occur, it does not\nmatter at all that the accused himself confess to the crime, _on no\naccount_ can he ever be arrested again for the offence! \"But how, when\nthe proofs of guilt are present and so certain, can the Lawyers expect\nto get the twelve men to go against their very senses?\" To answer this\nis to show the nature of the Jury system very plainly.\n\nWhen all the wranglings and speeches and Law-readings of the Lawyers\nhave at last ended; when the Judge--who has in the course of the\ntrial already loaded the twelve with all sorts of instructions as\nto what they are to keep in mind as _legal_ evidence, and what\nthey are to leave out of mind--has made a long and confused speech\n(often interrupted by the Lawyers) recapitulating those parts of the\nconflicting mass of evidence which, and _only_ which, _is_ evidence,\nand has told them the manner in which this evidence must be applied\nto the charge; has finally told them that the crime charged must be\nthe precise _crime_ laid down in the Law-books by that _name_, and\nnone other; and that having found beyond all doubt that that crime,\nupon the _legal_ evidence, has been committed, then has _the accused\ncommitted the crime_ so defined, and so proved? To be certain of this,\nthe accused must not only be found to have done it, but he must have\nknown that he was doing it--that is, he must have been sound in mind.\nAnd if in any of these particulars there be any doubt, the accused must\nbe acquitted; and further, every one of the twelve must agree--if any\n_one_ withhold his assent, then the prisoner cannot be declared to be\nguilty!\n\nWith all these clear and simple directions (!) as to how they are\nto use their minds, an officer leads the twelve into a strong-room,\nand fastens them in! to consider their _verdict_ (as it is called).\nNot to consider simply and directly upon the plain evidence of their\nsenses, and according to reason ordinarily used, but to consider _their\nVerdict_--a technical, artificial affair, made by the Lawyers, and only\nfit for _their_ minds--if even _they_ could do anything satisfactory to\nan honest man with it!\n\nThe twelve are locked in and guarded by an officer; deprived of\nfood, of rest, of any recreation; perhaps already exhausted from the\nhair-splitting [di-do-tzi] and intricate directions and proceedings.\nThey are _Sworn_ to give their verdict according to the _Law_ (first)\nand the _Evidence_ (second). The evidence, however, being _all law_.\nThen, too, they are to say either _Guilty_, or _not guilty_; and no\nmore.\n\nNow, the Lawyer's expectation may become verified. There is no sort of\ndoubt in any of the twelve that the accused is a horrid wretch, and\nthat he is guilty. But one man has got hold of an idea, based upon\nsomething said by the Judge, or perhaps only the suggestion of his own\nmind; and think of the vanity, the stupidity, the dishonesty, the mere\nindifference, the obstinacy, the excessive timidity, the weakness,\nwhich is likely to be in each of the twelve; one man has got _his_\nopinion--it is a matter of conscience. The one man is sufficient.\nNothing can move him. Hour after hour passes. Night comes on--hunger\nknocks at the stomach; home is wanted; business is exacting; illness\noppresses some, lassitude and sheer exhaustion overpower others--the\none persists, only more obstinate by opposition--\"The man no doubt is\nguilty, but I doubt if he be guilty according to law!\"\n\nThey cannot agree upon a verdict. The Judge and everybody else long\nsince have gone to _their_ homes and pleasures. _They_ (the twelve)\ncannot escape unless they agree. To be sure, they may report to the\nJudge late on the next day that they cannot agree--only, however, to\nreceive new directions (!), and be sent back again and kept till they\nshall agree!\n\nHuman nature gives way. The one, strong and resolute, overpowers the\neleven--or, rather, there have been only a part who would not have\ngiven over long ago. The fine maxim of English law--\"_It is better that\na thousand guilty escape than that one innocent suffer_\"--turns the\nscale. There is a _doubt_--or something which looks like it--\"let the\naccused have the benefit of it!\"\n\nNow, in this scene, I am taking it for granted that the twelve are\nreally not dishonest--not one of them. But suppose _one_ is, in secret,\nthe determined friend of the accused!\n\nThus, the Verdict of the Jury (not the direct and honest opinion of\ntwelve men in a rational and ordinary use of their minds) is recorded\nin the Court--_Not guilty_. And a murderer is at once discharged;\nperhaps escorted with applause from the place by associates of his\nevil courses. Restored to the community which doubts not his guilt,\nand which has been horrified, agitated, and oppressed by its frightful\ndetails! It will be noticed how admirably everything, in this system,\nworks to procure the escape of the guilty; but it must not be\noverlooked that it falls with crushing weight upon the _innocent_.\nSimple and direct inquiry would generally clear him at once. But\nno--the _theory_ in the minds of the officers is, that this _innocency_\nis a fraud; and the whole machinery works just as irrationally as\nbefore; because, the clear evidences of innocency are disregarded--the\nprisoner's guilt is unreasonably assumed (contrary to the reverse\nlegal maxim) _by the officers_; and the whole crushing blow of this\nassumed guilt falls upon the innocent. He is thrust into prison; torn\nfrom family, friends, human sympathy; his actual trial is put off\nweek after week, aye, month after month, whilst the officers hunt\nfor what does not exist outside of their imaginations; and, finally,\nfrom sheer shame, the poor victim is discharged before an _actual\ntrial_--discharged, it may be ruined and for ever tainted with the\nfoul and unjust suspicion. Or, perhaps, finally _tried_, escapes after\na long, tedious and confused scene; where the officers, anxious to\nconvict one whom _they_ have so long assumed to be guilty, contrive\nto throw just enough of suspicion upon the victim to render his life\never after insupportable! However, he finally goes at large--ruined\nby enormous expenses, health shattered by confinement in prison,\nand _tainted_ in character. The victim of an absurd system--for the\nverdict is, for him, irrational and cruel. If, in the other case, _not\nguilty_ did not mean what the words imply--so, in this, the Jury give\na no more meaning _Verdict_. No expression of any actual opinion. No\nsympathy, no regret; nothing to reinstate the unfortunate victim of\nofficial stolidity and conceit. _Nothing_ whatever; not so much as any\ncompensation for loss of time and money. Meantime, during this pursuit\nof the innocent, the real criminal has got safely away.\n\nNow, this strange _Jury system_, boasted of as the _Palladium_ of\nLiberty by the English Barbarians, strikes my poor mind as something\nvery cumbersome, irrational, and hurtful. The criminal class may\nwell esteem it, for it seems exactly contrived to set the criminal\nat liberty, and to vex, terrify, annoy, and confuse everybody else.\nWitnesses themselves often fare more hardly than the actual criminal!\nand Society is shocked by needless and reiterated exposures of every\nparticular of dreadful things to no rational purpose--unless to give\nfees to Lawyers and a host of busy officials, who live and fatten in\nthese horrors.\n\nOne might suspect that the whole machinery was contrived by the Lawyers\n(called _criminal_) to effect their purpose--that is, to protect their\nfriends and supporters; the numerous men, women, and half-grown youths\nswarming everywhere, and known as the _criminal class_.\n\nAnother unjust custom is when a man offends a Judge, he is not at once\nbrought before him for reproof and proper correction. No; for his\ndisrespect he is compelled to pay a _fine_ [tsig] in money which may\nbeggar his innocent family, or prevent his creditors from obtaining\ntheir dues; or, _unable_ to pay, must lie in prison till it _be paid_,\nor until released by the angry Judge. Thus making the innocent to\nsuffer! How much better in our _Flowery Land_, where disrespectful\nconduct is at once reprimanded and, if the disrespect be marked,\npunished on the spot, in the presence of the magistrate, and under his\npaternal direction.\n\nThese may serve to illustrate usages not readily referable to any\nprinciple. They are rooted in old customs, when general ignorance and\nuniversal poverty made the mass one, and when simplicity and directness\nwere natural. They are retained now in an artificial and totally\ndifferent state of society, for no better reason than the English\nBarbarians have for other abuses and enormities--_they support the\nfungi which cling to them_! And the upper classes find their interests\nconcerned in maintaining things as they are. The lower classes, too\nignorant to see, are made to believe that nothing in human Wisdom\nand experience excels these very Laws and customs! The Barbarian\nstolidity, too, in the well-to-do classes, supports these singular\nviews as to the perfection of the Laws and system of administration.\nThese classes constantly mistake this _stolidity_ for solidity of\ncharacter. When an evil is unmistakable, none the less, instead of\nremoving it, they say, \"Better bear those ills we have than fly to\nothers we know not of!\" (Quoting from their great Shakespeare.) But\nthey do not stop to consider if it must necessarily follow that when\none quits one ill he flies to _another_. As if one with a sore finger\nshould refuse to apply any remedy to the _finger_ for fear he might\nthereupon find a sore upon his leg!\n\nPerplexed with these anomalous conditions, and by the stupid conceit\nand selfish indifference--the callousness and greed of the English\nBarbarians--I have wondered if, after all, these men were not of a\ndifferent kind [sty-pho]. Possibly, the Sovereign Lord and Father\nof men, for wise purposes, may have created different sorts of\nmen. Animals of the same type differ in swiftness, in strength, in\nintelligence. The Western Barbarians, though of the same type, may be\ninferior to our Illustrious people in the moral and mental functions.\nFor some purpose in Eternal Wisdom, the Almighty Lord has given them\nstrength of body, energy, and an _intellect_ sharp in matters of the\n_instinct_--which refers to the needs and passions of the body--thus,\ncalculating, ingenious in contrivance, and inordinately selfish; but\nhas not given them a large moral faculty, nor a broad and comprehensive\nmind. _They are, therefore, incapable of improvement beyond a limited\nrange._\n\nThe Idolatry, and its horrible grotesqueness--the inefficacy of the\ngood in the character of the Christ-god, to influence the least\nabatement in the passion for Force; the cold-blooded abuses, and the\nconfusion of error and truth, may be thus accounted for.\n\nThis, however, suggests a continuance of the evils which have fallen\nupon _others_. The _All-wise_ sees where chastisement is due--and\nallows the Western Barbarians their time. The offences of the East need\nchastisement. The quickness, strength, and greed of the Barbarians,\nunchecked by moral considerations, make them the scourge of other\ndistant peoples not possessing these qualities. The scourge is needed,\notherwise it would not be permitted. There is a sufficiency of morality\nto prevent dissolution; and the Western tribes will no doubt fulfil\ntheir appointed task.\n\nStill, in their present forms, rooted in a _lower_ type of man, they\nmust disappear; not lost, but absorbed and blended in a better and\nnobler race. In the East, I suspect this _highest_ type has always\nexisted. Here, from immemorial ages and ages [tang-se-yan-se] the\nsimple worship of the Sovereign Lord, and the divine faculty in man,\nhave found their best expression, and taken a fixed and steadfast root\nin Government and in Society!\n\nI may be mistaken, and it is possible that the Western tribes may be\ncapable of attaining to this settled order--but it must be after very\nlong moons and thousands of moons [lir-re-ty-sin], during which they\nshall have overturned and reformed existing laws and customs.\n\nI may refer shortly to some of the more striking of these, so curiously\nand radically different from our notions in the _Central_ Kingdom, and\nso erroneously conceived in respect of the DIVINE ORDER. _First._--As\nto the character and worship of the Sovereign Lord of Heaven, and\nFather of men. Concerning the errors in regard to the true character\nand proper recognition of the Heavenly Lord, I need scarcely say more.\nThere are wise barbarians who do not differ from my poor thought as\nto the need of an entire reformation upon this whole matter, which\nunderlies nearly all genuine improvement in morals, in government, and\nin \"Society.\"\n\n_Second._--As to Government. This must be seen to exist in the\neternal order and nature of things, and not at all in any _Contract_\n[Kong-phu], \"social\" or other. Therefore whatever name be given to its\nHead, _the Function_ is as inviolable as is the Divinity from which it\ncomes. If this Head, however, be incapable of properly representing\nthe divine function, it does not therefore fail, but the nearest\n_fit_, in the established order acts. The Book of Rites and the great\nCouncil of the Illustrious, with us, see to this proper and orderly\nsuccession. No one is born to be absolutely Head--the Book of Rites and\nthe Illustrious _Calao_, in our system, may see to it that the Head be\nfit for the due and divine order. Therefore, no one is born by _right\nof birth_ to govern, nor to make, nor to administer, laws. Wisdom and\nknowledge only, may entitle their possessors to take rank among those\nto whom government and administration shall be committed; and these may\nbe changed, degraded, exalted, and removed as they conduct themselves,\nand not according to any family, nor hereditary distinction. Nor are\n_Places_ created for the aggrandisement of any, continued for the\nbenefit of families, nor, in any case, made hereditary. Places are for\nthe whole, and those who fill them are placed there, in trust, for the\ngood of the whole, and must properly discharge the trust. They are\nnever for the individual--always for the State.\n\n_Third._--As to the family. The Family being the _Prototype_ [mo-dsi]\nof Government, should show the Divine order. It must be one; not a\ndivided, unintelligent _accident_ [phatsi]. It must have a clear\nfaculty, and understand its true and vital significance--for the\ncommunity is but an aggregation of families, and as these are so is the\nState. Then, to have disorder there is to have disorder throughout!\nThere _must_, therefore, be in the Family, obedience to its head,\norder, and good conduct. If there be insubordination, disorder,\nimmorality, disrespect, and disobedience to the natural head, then that\nis a disorderly family, and those who are guilty of the disobedience,\ndisrespect, and disorder are _criminals_, to be corrected, restrained,\nand reformed.\n\nWoman, upon this right conception of the family, finds her proper and\nher honoured place. She is subordinate, but not in any humiliating\nsense; she is subordinate, because, in the very nature of her function\nas woman in the economy of nature, she cannot be otherwise--she _is_\ntimid, defenceless, dependent. She has a right to the tender care and\nprotection of her male relatives; and she, on her part, is bound to be\nobedient, submissive, orderly; and, upon these, affection follows.\nHer children are bound to respect and to obey her, and she is bound\nto have a care for them, and to respect and obey her husband as the\nunquestioned centre of regard and authority. The father (and husband)\n_is_ the Head of the family; there is no divided nor disputed power.\nUpon _him_ rests the responsibility of due order and proper position.\n\nFrom her nature and duties, the woman lives retired within her house.\nIf she go abroad, it will be only from necessity, and then in the most\nquiet, modest, and unobstrusive way. She lives for her relatives, her\nfamily; not to attract the admiration of others, nor with the faintest\nidea that she may shine _abroad_--to be so charged would be to be\ncharged as _shameless_. Only by this degraded _class_, who are barely\ntolerated without the city, and under the rigid supervision of the\nofficers of order and decorum--could such a purpose be supposed to be\nthought of? She dresses with neatness, according to the established\norder, but always with such modesty that nothing is offensive to the\nchastest eye. She understands the range of her activity and of her\naffections. It is within the circle of family and relatives. All her\naccomplishments are to make her home pleasing. Duties and places are\nsettled. She lives for those to whom she belongs, and who also belong\nto her. Her smiles are for her husband, and for her children, and her\nrelations. She has no thought of going abroad to shine, nor to waste\nthe time and money which belong to her family upon strangers. She never\ndreams that she has any _mission_ which calls her away from her home.\nShe has no _call_ to \"clothe the ragged,\" wash other people's dirty\nchildren, reform evil-doers, \"convert the _heathen_,\" nor support\n\"Society!\" (These are some of the phrases which you will hear among the\nBarbarian women).\n\nWhere women have not husbands, none the less they have relatives, and\ntheir home is with them. They have a right to this home, and are bound\nto do their duty in it, submissively, usefully, and quietly.\n\nIf the Western Barbarians would see to it that all women, married or\nunmarried, were duly cared for in homes of relatives, _as of right_,\nand that they also made themselves welcome there by their usefulness\nand obedience, they would find an end of that agitation as _to Women's\nRights_ existing among them. Rights would be as indisputable as\nduties--and the first of these would be a quiet, modest, and rational\nobedience to their natural protectors, who, in turn, would be bound\nto respect and protect them. And if by any strange chance a woman was\nabsolutely without relatives (a thing nearly impossible in our _Flowery\nLand_), then the State should see to it that she had a suitable home.\n\nThe education of woman, in a well-ordered Society, is also fixed and\nclear. It has immediate relation to her position and her duties.\n\nShe is from the first never disturbed in the natural order. She sees\nher relatives always quiet, modest, _obedient_. She never thinks this\nstate of things to be wrong. She perceives the manner of female life;\nits seclusion, its devotion to the family, its purpose, and end. There\nis no complexity about it, no _outside_ glitter, no field for show, no\nseeking for excitement and display. All her duties are at home--_her_\nhappiness is _there_; _there_ she is to be attractive, and there she\nis to attract--the love and respect of her husband, the regard of her\nrelatives, the affection and obedience of her children!\n\nSo, her education needs no straining after effect. It looks directly\nto her duties, to her natural function and place; and to those\naccomplishments, of mind and of person, which shall enable her to\nbe happy with books, with music, and the like; and shall add to the\npleasures of her home.\n\nAll these things are common-place with us--so simple as to appear\ntrivial. Our Illustrious wives and mothers could not _understand_ the\nreasons for their elaboration--they have never seen the women of the\nWestern Barbarians!\n\nThe position of women in the _Social_ system of the West, on the whole,\nis the most remarkable thing in it.\n\nI have made sufficiently suggestive remarks in the progress of these\n_Observations_; and only now have to add a word or two upon the\n_general_ effect.\n\nIt gives a wonderful life, restlessness, and colour to the whole aspect\nof Barbarian life. Think of all the women in our Illustrious Land, at\nonce leaving their homes, the seclusion of their orderly houses and\nlives, and rushing everywhere with the men, over the Land! And, not\nonly so, dressed in splendid gaiety of colour, and adorned with gems\nand feathers, crowding into all places of amusement and of travel!\n\nNor this only, but showing themselves, in public places, with men,\nwhere paintings and sculpture, and things here only seen by men alone,\nare exhibited! And, often, so dressed as to cause even the man to\nblush!\n\nWhy, the face of social life is completely altered. Instead of gravity,\ndignity, and an undivided attention to the duties of daily life,\neverything is rendered restless, confused; there seems to be no natural\norder, nor scarcely natural (cultured) decorum.\n\nBut we must not be misled. Nature is too strong to be pushed aside--and\nwith cultivation, even though imperfect, the moral instinct lives\nand saves. Habit, too, \"is a second nature;\" (as our divine Confutzi\nsays); and what would be so overwhelming, if at once done, being usual,\nnecessarily _has been_ subordinated to some rule--and made, at least,\ntolerable.\n\nAnd now, in drawing these _Observations_ to an end, perhaps, I may\nadd, in respect of my poor and unworthy thoughts, that if I have\nsaid amiss, and which offends, I beg our Illustrious will pardon.\nTo our _Literati_, exalted in wisdom, there is but little to which\nthey may curiously look--but to _our people_, if any there be with\nwhom some discontent may have been caused by too close intimacy with\n_Missionaries_ in our ports; by these let my poor _Observations_ be\nstudiously pondered--that they may praise the Sovereign Lord of Heaven,\nwho has given them to live in the _Central and Illustrious Kingdom_;\nwhere a true morality and a true worship are known; and where due ORDER\nAND PEACE, resting upon the unchangeable Heavenly order and peace, are\nestablished!\n\nHere, are no brutal worship of Force, and admiration of bloody\nplunders. Content to the due ordering of affairs, and with peace\nwithin, our Illustrious Realm seeks no aggrandisement, dreams of no\nconquests; and _wishes to do nothing but good_. It has no fears for its\nown position, nor jealousy of others. It is simply calm, strong, wise,\nand self-poised. It demands no more from others abroad than that it may\npeacefully live; and _be treated with that respect which it accords to\nthose who practise moderation and virtue_.\n\n\nFINIS.\n\n\nBarrett, Sons & Co., Printers, 21, Seething Lane, London, E.C.","title":"Some Observations Upon the Civilization of the Western Barbarians, Particularly of the English: made during the residence of some years in those parts.","tradition":"philosophy-ethics","translated_text":null,"word_count":80107}