The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1868-06-28

population on the face OF the globe,
It has the most homogeneous people
in the world. It has language
which is spoken by more human
beings than any other language in
the world, and it is written in the
rock. It is country where the
maxims of the great sages coming
down memorized have permeated
the whole people. until their know
ledge is an instinct rather than an
requirement. The people are loyal
while living. and their last prayer,
when dying. is to sleep in the soil of
their fathers. It is the land of
scholars, and the land of schools. It
is the land of books, from small
pamphlets to encyclopedias of 5000
volumes. It is the land where, as
you have said, Mr.. Sherman, the
privileges are equal. It is land
without caste, for they destroyed
their feudal system Q, 100 years ago,
and they built up their great struc-
ture of civilization on the idea that
the people are the source of power.
That idea was uttered by Mencius
1890 years ago, and was old when
he uttered it. The power flows forth
from that people into practical
government, through the competi-
tive system, and they make scholar.
ship the test of merit I say it is a
great people; it is polite people; it
is patient people; it is n sober
people; it is an industrious people,
And it is such people as this that
some bitter men would exclude from
the council hall of the nation; and it
is such a nation that the tyrannical
element would put under its ban.
They say of this people, comprising,
as you have said, Mr.. Chairman,
nearly half of the human race, that
they must become the weak wards of
the West-wards of nations not so
populous as many of their provinces,
wards of people who did not exist
when their youngest villages were
founded. I do not mean to say that
the Chinese are perfect. Far from
it, They have their faults, like
every people; they have their pride,
like other people; they have their
prejudices, like other people. These
are profound-these must be over
come. They have their conceits,
like other people-these must be
done away with. But they are not
to be done away with by talking to
them with the cannon-by telling
them that they are feeble and weak,
and are barbarians. No; China has
been cut off, by her position, from
the rest of the world. She has been
separated from it by lmitless deserts
and by broad oceans; but now, when
the views of men are expanding,
when we behold the very globe itself
diminishing in size now, when
science has dissipated the desert and
narrowed the ocean, we find that
China, seeing another civilization on
every side of her, has her eyes wide
open to the situation. She sees
Russia on the North, Europe on the
West, America on the East She
sees cloud of sail on her coast; she
sees mighty steamers coming from
everywhere, bow on; she feels the
inspiration from the electric tele-
graph falling hot upon her every
where, and she rouses herself, not in
duScr, Dub loE drBuuleut. OHe Says
that she finds, by not being in a
condition to compete with the other
nations, for so long time, that she
has lost ground. She comprehends
very we'll that she must come into
union with the civilization of the
ere; and, feeling that, she does not
wait, but comes out to meet you,
and extends to you her hand. She
tells you that she is ready to take
upon her ancient civilization q graft
of your civilization. She tells you
that she is ready to take back our
own inventions, with all their de-
velopments. She tells you that she
is willing to trade with you,
to buy of you and sell to you, and to
strike off the shackles of trade She
invites your merchants; she invites
your missionaries. She tells them
to plant the shining cross on every
hill md every valley; for she is hos
pitable to fair argument. I say she
tells you she is willing to strike off
the shackles of trade. She offers
you almost free trade to-day. Hold
ing the great staples of the earth
tea and silk-.she charges you
scarcely any tariff on those exports