New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-11-09
Civilized Heather.
[ Prom the Springfield, Massachusetts,, Repubica


on Civilized Heathen," as outlined to a
large audience ut the Memorial Church last
night, proves a success. Not but that it
deserves it, for we doubt it any lecture OF
the season set the public to thinking more
vigorously than this. But Mr.. Murray has
attacked our pet hallucination that our
civilization is incomparably superior to all
others, and that we are created to instruct
the world. and we fear he has committed
an objectionable sin in thus pouring gall
and worm wood into the challce from which
We have all been accustomed to drink only
selt.esteem and self-gloritication these
many years. The lecture, or rather talk
for such the speaker preferred to call 1t
was preceded by an explanation that the
lecturer was some what embarra ssed from
the fact that he had obtained permission,
after much asking, to speak extempOrane-
ously on the subject of his new lecture,
having promshed to first present the
lecture itself in the Boston Music Hall. Then
taking up his theme, he talked converse
tionally about it for something over an
hour. Consistently with his repeated de-
claratlOns, be discussed modern heathenlSm
entirely from one point OF view, bring out
and comparing its virtues and not Its vices.
The fact that we are making strenuous
efforts to Christianize the world proves
conclusively that we believe ourselves
better every way than the heather. We
assume that we can teach China, Japan
and the old nations OF the East; that We
can do more than all their past has done
He proposed to institute few comparisons
between his audience and those nations,
between their civilization and ours; to con-
slider the arts sciences, literature, religions,
and governments that we propose to sup
plant.
First. the religion of Buddha, which has
more followers than any other. The word
has a strange, heathenish sound to US, and
to church goers suggests only heathensm.
Yet religion lat, the assets OF more than
one-half the world, numbers nine nations Of
followers, has already developed more OF
art and science than we shall IN hye hun
bred years more, must be treated with re-
spect. We may learn that our religion can
find some things to copy, and New England
go to school to China, japan and Ceylon,
The basal idea of this religion is the in
finite capability of the human intellect.
1t has nothing sensual or emotional about
it, 1t is pure rationalism, better than any
Ralph Waldo Emers o ever taught, except
what he borrowed from it. 1t always ap-
peals to reason; toierates no passion or
undue appetltes seeks to win converts
only by argument and persuasion. Its
weapon is the sermon, its champion the
brain, and its reliance argument. For 300
years. it has never known but one eligious
war, and that is so small that nothing def
mite can be learned about it. How does
this compare with European history and the
records of our ancestors in New Englands
Take thOusad years from human history,
and see how Buddhism was continually an
instrument of peace and federation, and
European religions the instruments OF war
and prosecutions. Buddhism never perse-
cuted; never deceived the people, debased
or discouraged literature, appealed to preiu-
dice or passion: never appealed to the
sword. II this is heathenism, it is civilized
heathenism. But the heather ia mOre.- He
is a humane being. The Buddhist priest
recognizes as man and brother" whoever
has intellect. 1t is only Of late years that
we have learned that the State and church
can exist apart, but the Buddhist religion
has had no connection with the government
for eight hundred years. We establish hos
pitfalls for suffering humanity-they for
suffering brutes, as we'll. Our magazines
are lust beginning to advocate the planting
of shade trees, and we shall do it, If at all,
as matter of taste. They have done it
from a sense of duty for thirty centuries.
We entertain strangers-at hotels, if they
pay. Their poorest huts are always open,
and they receive every stranger as guest
of God, to be given the best of everything.
The testimony of missionaries who have
spent years among them is, that they are
very polite. almost universally temperate,
and that indecencies of word or act are
almost never seen. Contrary to the gem
orally accepted belief, children are kindly
treated, the men taking delight in helping
care for them. Widows with children are
thought more desirable as wives than those
without; maternity always brings respect.
Here it Is hard to get any law against the
sale of intoxicating drink but China long
n IN cd Fl, 1;oapa fha sale Of Onjum
the high moral ground that 1t was not right
to license any evil.
Leaving religion, compare ourselves with
China as a nation. We are anxious to
ChristiaEize it: to change its morals, its hab-
its, its customs; to put new forces and hg-
ures into its literature; in short, to Angi-
cize and Americanize it. 1t is assuming
that our morals, fashions and customs are
better than theirs. Let us see. China is
twice the size of the United States. embrac-
ing a territory of 100000 square miles.
1t is densely populated, and contains $780,
O00. 900 inha bltants-half the population of
the globe. This is the mass we propose to
teach. AS a nation it has literally Outlived
history. HerodOtus. ''the father of histO-
rians," tells of having seen monuments of
kings who lived 1000 years before his day.
Rome, Greece and the nations of antiquity
have passed away, but China has stood i'm
muCaDlo u tluc. NOt OIL dIG LIDS
been lost, not a science forgotten, nothing
has gone. Its oral language has been
preserved without changing tense. Its
mechanical triumphs are unrivaled Its
great wall stands alone as a work of ma
sonry; its largest canal is twice as long as
the Erie; it was perforated with artesian
wells 2000 years ago; inoculated all it's chill
dren in the ninth and possibly in the fifth
century; had splendid Libraries of printed
books centuries before the art OF printing
was discovered. The basal idea of the gov
eminent is the paternal, and here is one Of
the chief reasons of its stability The En-
peror is considered as the father of the
nation. Another reason is, that revolt is
always in order in China; that is, the gov
eminent is never overthrown, but the En-
peror is liable to be at any time. What
have we to offer for these things, Corrup-
ton Ability to deceive? The government
of China rests upon education. None
but thorough scholars are hOnOred with
office, and the poorest may work himself up
to any station. Can we offer morel Their
aristocracy is of brains, and it is better than
the French of military power, the English
of blood, or ours of wealth. What can we
give them9 They are we'll fed, well cloth
ed, universally educated, have every art
and science What do you propose to do [?
To teach them to cheat? To Jorge. To
get drunk To become irreverent? To
adopt our fearful American profanity,
grosser than on earth. To give Illinois,
Arkansas, or Texas ignorance to nation
that mas had common schools for two thou
sand wears! To introduce Yankee office
holders and New York rowdy Congress
men, Or do we propose to send bibles,
and as was done recently, send three
missionaries and 2i0 barrels of rum on the
same shipl When, after twenty or forty
years observation of such. things, those
educated men repudiate our religion, what
will you say! The trouble is, we have not
reduced our religion to practice. They
know more of this life. we of the life to
l..