The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1872-12-20

CHINA.

CHINA.
How the Enpsror W. Married -Ths LIN.
perial HeussAsaA ae4ovcreign's Char
lrron s>s I'm .i(.u a.zess.i
At an age when English boys are pur-
suing their studies at Eaton or Harrow,
the Emperor of China has taken upon
himself the responsibilities of matrimo-
my. The telegram which proclaims
tie fact is brief in the extreme. We
are merely told that ."the Emperor of
China was married at Pekin, ON the
10th Of October. There was no public
ceremony outside the palace, beyond
the procession to bring the bride thither,
and the whole affair passed off very
quietly" The .prosaic terms of this
announcement are an accurate reflection
Of the mechanical nature of the con-
tract. Even the small degree of free
dom which, under the stringent rules of
Chinese etiquette, is accorded to pri-
vate individuals, is forbidden to the
Son of Heaven. In strict compliance
with the laws laid down in the " Ritu-
ais, temper ID, it must be added, with
no small amount of political jobbery,
the officers appointed for the purpose
select out of the millions of the small
footed inhabitants of China one to be
the Empress. Her future husbands
tastes are no more considered in the
choice than if he were a lay figure, and
should the lady prove herself to be, as is
sometimes the case, the "better horse,
he lapses into nonentity, and takes
refuge in the destinations of his harem
from the worry of public affairs. In
these destinations lie the principal OBJ
stacles to the Emperors of China pur-
suing career of usefulness and honor,
especially when, as in the present in
stance, the occupier of the throne is but
a boy.
THE IMPERIAL HOUSEHOLD.
As there was no court newsman pres
ent on the 10th of October to chronicle
all that was said and done within the
palace, and as the " Rituals are silent
as to any special form of ceremony on
The occasion of an imperial wedding, we
must take it for granted that no more
intricate service was performed than
that required to unite Squire Chang
with Miss Lew. But with regard to
the constitution of the imperial house
hold the aforementioned Rituals
give us fuller information. The num-
Der. of wives and concubines is so ar
ranged as to form series In geometri-
cal progression, with three as its COM
mon ratio. Thus, by law-for the
Rituals have the force of law-the
the Emperor is compelled to take unto
himself, besides the Empress, three la
dies as petites femnes of the first de-
gree-these have already been selected
for his Imperial Majesty-nine of the
second degree, twenty-seven of the
third degree, and nine times nine con-
cubines. With equal precision the va
rious duties of these ladies are infinitely
laid down, and not much more latitude
as to the choice of his companions ap-
pears to be allowed to the Emperor after
his marriage than in the original selec-
ton of the members of his household.
For instance, no matter ON what terms
he may happen to be with the Empress,
he is obliged, in compliance with an
ancient theory, sanctioned by Confucius
and hallowed by the approval of the
hAoCcb Aitl VA S4AiHo, w oOOA Ava SONiSsy
alone at the recurrence of every full
moon, and only then As the moons
wax and wane, rules equally stringent
meet him at every turn, and unless he
be strong enough to throw aside his
Ritualistic trammels, he must submit to
life OF dull routine. But while the
Rituals present such an abject pic
ture of the Imperial life, they provide
abundant and varied occupation for the
inmates of the harem Ths numerous
sacrifices, rites and duties connected
| with the internal administration of the
palace, apart from all political intrigu-
ing, leave the Empress and the three
principal petites .JeDnes little time In
which to be idle. To each of the nine
pctites .ten,naes of the second rank is
told of "squad of nine of the eighty
one concubines, for instruction in all
the arts and accomplishments which
adorn female life in China. In sacrifi-
cial and religious rites they take part,
and they attend on the Empress when
she receives visitors To duties of the
same kind is added, in the case eff the
rank below these, the superintendent
of the women servants of the palace.
From each of the eighty-one concubines
is annually expected a certain amount
of plain and embroidered work. On the
occasion of the funeral of the Empress,
they hold the wings which decorate the
coffin, and on the decease Of any great
parsonage within the palace, it falls to
their lot to wash the head of the corpse.
One more thing is required of them,
compared with which every other duty
appears as light IS air-to their tact and
persuasive powers is entrusted the re-
sponsibility of suppressing the jealousies
which not unnaturally arise in a house
hold consisting of one hundred and
twenty ladies and one lord
THE sovERRIGN's CHARACTER.
OF the personal character of the young
Emperor little or nothing is known out
side the yellow-tiled walls of the palace.
He is said to be childish in his tastes
and amusements, and if this be true,
surrounded as he is by all that is ealcu-
lated to foster idleness and sensuality,
the prospect of the future before him is
not encouraging. The stuff of which
the Emperors who founded and estab-
lished the present dynasty were made
seems to have disappeared with the
urgent necessity for constant and vigor-
Gus action. 1t is difficult to recognize
in the last occupant Of the throne-who
before he was thirty died, it may be
fairly said, of too yielding obedience
to the Rituals "a descendant of men
like Kang-he or Kien-lang, each of
whom ruled the millions of China for
sixty years, and, dying, left monuments
of their literary and administrative abil-
ity which Will last as long as China re-
mains an Empire and its language en-
who attempt to pry into its mysteries.
Small P0x Remedy.