Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1853-07-21
CHINA.
TIE REBELLION AND THE SECRET
ASSOCIATIONS.
A writer in The London Daily .Nsms has tn,
following:

At the present crisis Of affairs in China it
may be well to call attention to the secret asso-
ciations which are the prime movers in the re-
bellion. John Chinaman has been eminen,ly
successful in mystifying the outer barbarians
with respect to these societies
"Iien-Ith, Tan 7'dc, or Then Tth, uhe last
term being the most correct is Hicuy, or Sc
cret association OF the Chinese, and according
to their account is of very great antiquity in
deed some Of their ancient writers say. that it
originated in the earliest ares of mankind, when
well disposed people found 1t necessary to com
bine for mutual protection again the ll-dispos-
ed, who, like the wandering lnriars of the pres
ent day, had very ndstinct perception of the
difference between meUm and tWum, and for
whom nothing was too hot or too heavy. Con
tucus, the Chinese Solomon is their great phi
losopher, and THIS circumstance led Drs. Milne,
Morrison, and Medhurst, to consider that the as
ISOLATION was identical with that of the Free
masons, and certainly their avowed principles of
mutual assistance and duty toward their neigh
Dor very closely correspond but there the re-
semblance ends. 1heeR' or TEN signifies
Heaven and TEL stand for Earth;' so that
Mr.. Ten Ten would be Mr.. 'Hearen and Earth >
The slgnication Of the name is exhibited Mt
length in the motto of the order, which is nscrib-
ed on the badges worn by its MEMBERS We
regulate our conduct in conformity with Heav-
en- and from every region of the earth we call
forth happiness When the present Tartar dy-
nasty obtained possession Of the throne of Chi
na, the following addition was made to the mot
to-Myriads look forward to the overthrow of
the 'Manchus' and the restoratiou of the Ming
Wing being the name OF the old Chinese dynas-
ty now sought to be restored.
The association does not seem to have been
noticed by Europeans until DIR Milne, the Prin-
Z r of I'll i.
up paper einbOdying the information he receiv-
ed from his Chinese friends, all of whom were
probably members of the association, although
not fully aware of it's ultimate objects. This pa
per was brought home by the late DR.. Morrison,
the great authority IN Chinese literature, and was
published in the first volume of the quarter Sc
rles of the Transactions of the Asatc Society
in 1925.
In China itself great secrecy has been main
tanned respecting he association, which has been
nided materially by the cunning expedient Of
changing its name occasionally. Rev Mr. Gut
inf was trcked in this manner when the reraa
OF one OF the branches of the assoc ton fell in
10 the hands Of the British at the taking of Hong
Kong, as from the interesting account which he
has given IN the Transactions of the Asiatic So
ciety for 1916 tp. 36l, he was evidently not a.
ware that the association was the same as that
described by DR.. Milne. and which he himself
must have met with IN the Straits of Malacca
Under the name of Hu San and Chez Hui. In
fact, the real name o'the Society, Trheen Ten
IS scarcely ever mentioned even by the initiated
among themselves. Mr. Guizlair calls 1t the
Secret Triud Society probably a translation of
the name by which 1t is known to the Hong
Kong Chincsc--nlmely, San Ito Hiruy' liter
ally three IN one ciety,' in ailusion to Heav-
en-, Earth, and Man. the three great principles Of
ho (prtef. nd ,t I, al,
dapuon.
The great object ofthe Society, the overthrow
Of the Tartar dynasty, has never been much Of
secret 1t was a common topic of conversation
at Singapore IN 1882 Every individual Chinese
~ the straits and nrighooung countries indeed
az may pretty safely be sadl every individual
Chinese out Of China, is a member of the Asso-
ciatlOn and as their intercourse with Europe
ans Is much closer than IL Is IN China, while at
the same time. they are further removed from
the fountain head they are less scrupulous a.
bout ma intaining secrecy, and anybody IN their
confidence can obtain ample information should
he feel DESTROYS Of seeking it. The confusion
has been assisted vastly by the ignlrance and
prejudice OF the European news caterers IN Chi
ma, who seem 70 take delight in Ignoring the la
bors Of the Straits phlologists or they could not
have overlooked DR.. Mines account referred to
above.
The association does not seem to have had a.
ny prospect Of immediate success ia overthrow
ing the Tartar dynasty, until the English inva-
sion OF China showed the weakness of the Tar
tars since which time it has been believed by
many who have studied the matter carefully.
their downfall became certain. The members
do not seem t. have offered any active assistance
to our troops, except in the instance mentioned
by Nr. Gulzlaif ia the paper already alluded to.
when they offered TO act as trucbes with the
English army ia the capture OF Hang Choo'-
but every soldier and sailor employed IN that ex-
pedhion must have often been made aware that
the bulk Of the people 70 the south at least were
By no means uuisvonble toward their enterprise.
In the Straits their friendly feeling was shown
by the rapidly with which tie stores for the
heet were collected, which would not have hap
pened # the members of the Association, who
constitute about nine .tenihs of the entire popu.
lauon OF Singapore, had been otherwise dspos
cd
a gentleman who has had unusual opportuni
ties OF acquiring information, and whose pursuits
have especially qualified him for forming cor.
rect opinion upon the subject, writes As To
the ultimate success Of the revolution there can
be no reasonable doubts even should the Euro
pean force IN china be 80 unwlse as to interfere
which Is by no means probable, for European IN
terests are identified with the success of the
'Teoels. lie Chinese, who charter twenty or
thirty European vessels every year to carry tim
her to the northern parts of China, indeed, near
ly every individual who carries on the outside
trade, Is connected with the ASSOCIATION, and is
therefore, deeply interested in the extension of
commerce, which will be equally ADVANTAGEOUS
tn us and to themselves" Since the above was
written the accounts received from China have
confirmed the opinion of this gentleman, as re-
CARDS the interference of the European forces.
The proclamation in favor of Christianity is.
most probably. only ruSe on the part OF Mr..
Heaven and Earih to prevent European interfer
ence on behalf of the existing Government but
II Is by no means improbable that the heads of
the Association would like to strengthen their
position by Introducing Christianity, and so great
is their Influence, that # so inclined they could
probably make the entire population profess the
creed en- nldSse, though they might be restrained
from doing so lest an in iueuce should arise that
Should overcome their own. But Buddhism and
all other idolatry, which they evidently connect
with the Tartar dynasty. NAV be
considered almost at an end in China; and as
there are many men among their leaders who
would be considered highly talented in any conn. |
try they may see the necessity of introducing
creed that will take more hold of the feelings of
the people than the crude theology of Conf1cius
and their early philosophers
hossUrH AND MAzzISr. The Glasgow Post
n I4f Ia - ms