The Sun.
London, England, 1854-01-07 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, JANUARY 7, 1854,

those places where they have drawn a well-marked
line between public and private property.
" That a nation where there are so many pirates
should respect the rights of property seems strange,
but so it is ; but the pirates have been mostly
created by the vile conduct of the mandarins.
" And, though last, not the least important rea-
son why I think they would settle down quietly
under Tae-ping-wang, is -that there is a thorough
sense of the worthlessness of joss-worship and of
the deep depravity of the priests, which makes
them ready to accept anything that commends
itself to their minds or appears an improvement.
Hitherto they were obliged by the difficulties of
their language, which increase with every step, in
acquiring a knowledge of it, to take their politics
on trust from the literati, which gave them great
powers ; but these have been falling into disrepute
from the venality of the Court in selling literary
honours ; and their religion they took on the same
terms from the priests. This, if it was not a sense-
less, and, except perhaps for the purposes of go-
vernment, a bad religion, at least recognised a
future state of rewards and punishments, and was,
therefore, better than none ; but they have ceased
to perceive any sense in it, and are practically
without restraint.
" One does not see how a people can become
utterly depraved if the system they are under is
constantly reverting to a future state, and thus
keeps conscience ever active, though ill-in-
formed ; but it is a question whether, in the
practical working of the system here the
claims of conscience have not been satisfied
by hush money—whether the priests have not
ignored the future state by teaching that they (the
people) were exempt from its claims by pay-
ment or penance. Morality they seem to compre-
hend ; and treat, in every place I have been, the
missionary, or the ' man of the book,' with con-
sideration, and, where attacks have been medi-
tated, their houses were marked for exemption ;
and, therefore, I cannot but believe that the ten
commandments set forth by Tae-ping-wana as the
rule of life will meet acceptance, will appeal to their
understandings, and, without fail, produce moral
results, if no better ; and we ' must be thankful
for the day of small things.' Christendom, as a
whole, has progressed no further, though, indeed,
it would be scandalised to be told so. There have
been men among them sensible of the abounding
evil, who have from time to time preached against
prevailing vices, if they did not preach morality for
its own sake, a morality such as was dictated by
perverted and unenlightened conscience, but still
valuable in its way, as testifying that all is not as
it ought to be ; that the flowery land' is not the
best and wisest ; as the forerunner of better, and
stimulating to inquiry after ' the better way.'
" One of these, a native of Chung-chow, a
populous and rich city, about 20 miles from here
(Amoy), on some missionaries going there, went
to hear them preach, approved their doctrine, as-
sisted them, and even joined in preaching after his
own fashion; finally he received them into his house,
and seemed, if he did not understand, at least to
drink in with avidity the wondrous theme as that
something he long looked for, as the truth belonging
to his own system which his parents had long lost;
for there are some notions current in China that
can only have been derived from Revelation. What
made his conduct the more remarkable was that
one of the missionaries was an European. This
man was in disrepute, and one whom no one liked
to meddle with, and on his admitting them, he
said, 'lt is a strange thing for a Chinaman to do,
but no one will meddle with me ; and, such was
his disrepute, that some of the people took excep-
tion to the missionaries for associating with him,
so that the Chinese servant of the English mission-
ary said, Why, he is like Zaccheus.' When the
insurrection broke out this man favoured the views
of the insurgents ; and, when the reaction took
place, the mandarins took his head off. Peace be
with him ! He was one of China's truest sons, and
the mandarins will have to account for his death
sooner than they expect.
" It occurs to me that the fall of this place marks
the deep hostility to the mandarin rule. Chung-
chow is the residence of numerous families who are
connected with mandarins ; and, though a rich
place, that had much to lose from change and from
placing it in the hands of an oppressed and im-
poverished class, yet they put the place in the
power of the insurgents, and they might have had
it still but that they showed a disposition to
squeeze these connexions of mandarins ; but they,
being so numerous and rich, hired people to
drive them out, and then murdered a thousand
of them. The former Governor was intreated to
return ; but, though he did, he was unable to re-
establish things. The place has remained ever
since with the gates closed, in a state of practical
siege, as they are in difficulties for provisions, the
country people remaining hostile. The distress
entailed upon the poor is intense. The whole trade
of Amoy passed through Chung-chow ; and some
idea of its amount may be gathered from the fact
that there were 2,000 registered boats plying be-
tween the two places, carrying sugar, aTc., and
these had, upon an average, eight persons in each.
All these are thrown out of employ, besides many
thousands whose labour was bestowed in the manu-
facture, (tc., of these products.
" There are still some who talk of the good rule
of the Mantchoo. I have no hesitation in saying
that this is a great mistake—that whatever is good
in the existing rule is not new, and whatever is
new is not good.' They judge, perhaps, from pas-
sing through districts which abound with fertility
—the result of industry and, no doubt, compara-
tive peace ; but this is the result of their patri-
archal rule which has been perpetuated by the wor-
ship of ancestors, and the rule of ennobling the
ancestors rather than the descendants for any
deed of renown ; but this is Chinese, not Mant-
choo, and this prosperity is confined to the poor
and rural districts where mandarins only appear to
collect land taxes. These talk of constituted
authority' and 'rulers,' and say that there was
no immediate outrage that should have induced
the people at this time to rebel. There has
been no time, I believe, for very many years that
the people had anything left to learn of human
woe ; and in any other country their sufferings
would have been long since considered beyond
human endurance. I cannot conceive how people
can pass through the streets of this and other
populous places, and see for themselves that the
misery, which is the exception in other countries,
is the rule, and yet say that the Mantchoo is a
paternal Government. Can it be a good Govern

went where infanticide is practised- openly as a
means of delivering their children from what the
parents consider worse than death—or where the
humane, to save them from this, bring them up to
sell them into slavery, concubinage, or worse—where
the weak are oppressed, and where the rich can
purchase exemption from punishments—except, in-
deed, where they become so rich by their extor-
tions or powerful by their crimes as to excite the
fears or the cupidity of the Emperor ? Can that
be a Government at all where the normal state is
revolt and internecine war—village fighting against
village,—the mandarin meanwhile folding his
hands till one has been victorious, and has perpe-
trated some such enormity as that which took
place not long since, not far from Canton, where
five captives had wooden pins driven into the joints
of their knees and were thus left in the sun to

starve,—and then only stepping in to say that if
he does not receive a certain sum from each village
he will take them before the higher authorities ?
Can that be a Government where Chap-ut-say, the
pirate chief, long the terror of the coasts for his
barbarities, is promoted to honour, because they
cannot control him ? Some may say that it was
politic, none would say that it was good. Can that
be good government, under which the crimes
which brought down God's judgment on
the ' Cities of the Plain,' are systematised, if
they are not actually, or rather the houses
and procurators, the subjects of express revenue
—the Emperors themselves being notoriously
among the worst offenders ?
" China under their rule has filled up the mea-
sure of her
.iniquities, and she will have to pass
through a fiery trial ; but out of it will come good.
I dare not justify wrong in any one, nor do I
mean to say that the insurgents are blameless,
but merely state facts which show that the blame
rests with their rulers because of their wickedness,
their oppression and neglect of the people, which
has brought them into the degraded state they
are in, from which their conduct is a natural con-
sequence.

"It is thought by many that the Imperialists
will take this place. No doubt they could do so
were they all honest and united ; but I verily be-
lieve there are members of the Triad Society among
them. It was said that one of their admirals was
discovered to be a member, and that he tried to
drown himself, but failed, and still remains an ad-
miral. It is also said that they are apprehensive
for Foochow, the provincial capital, and will have
to leave wihouut taking Amoy. Under any cir-
cumstances I fully believe their influence will be
impaired. If they do not take it, their incapacity
will be made even more apparent ; if they do, they
commit such outrages upon the unoffending that
they will bring greater discredit upon themselves
if their conduct will not produce a reaction.

" The inland transit is becoming so insecure that
the teas which formerly went to Canton are find-
ing an outlet at Foochow. It is much nearer to
the tea districts, and when once they find their
way there the probability is that they will not re-
turn to Canton. I think it probable that the
northern insurgents may stop the inland trade
proceeding to Canton in order to bring that place
to terms. The Imperialists there are strong from
their wealth."

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