The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1881-02-11
Mr.. DENsloW AND THE CHINESE.

Some years ago there was Secre
tary of the interior who became in
volved ii 4 eontroversy will. q seien-
titic gentieman, whom slies espursuit of
fossils and know ledge, ran across
some Indians who told some ugly
stories about the official. The Secre :
tary became very angry, and running
short of arguments he alluded to the
fossil hunter as "a Mr.. Marsh" It
SO happened chat the fossil hunter
was, not unknown TO fame. On the
contrary, he had written for the news
papers and scientific magazines
These instantly arrayed themselves
on his side, and the contemptuous
epithet, instead of burying the man
at whom it was launched by the Sec
retary, more than anything else assis-
ted in the overthrow of his high
ness. A man who. writes Professor
before his name, as does Van Buren,
Denslow, ought SO have some knowl-
edge of this little affair, but if so, he
fails to Indicate the fact in an article
recently written by him for the In
ternational Review on ~thc Chinese
Question" IN which he alludcs to the
arguments opposed to bis as ''supeffi-
| Z Il. I
Now, 1t is more than possible that
the paper of Mr.. Densiow might
have passed unchallenged by the
Pacific Coast, as similar frolh is be-
ing constantly poured forth 10y East
ern Cllinophiles. But. his gratuitous
compliment TO his opponents-t those
who, perhaps, know something about
the matter-ca.ls for a reply of some
kind.
1 The burden of lIr. Denslow's ar
gument is that the population OF
China has been vastly overestimatea.
He assails all the recognized anthori-
ties on the subject, opposing to their
positive figures simple expressions OF
incredulity. After laboring through
considerable comparative data be
finally settles down to the opinion
that there may be from $4,000, 200 to
$50, 10000 inhabitants, and that, il
encouraged by liberal system Of
importation, the Flowery. Kingdom
might spare us within the next fifty
years about 2o,oo0,0o0. This num-
Der of immigrants Mr.. Denslow
speaks Of in such iaunty fashion as
to indicate that he regards il as a
mere bagatelle. In fact hesxssulnes
that we can derive nDthiing but adj
vantage from their coming, as hun.
dreds OF thoasantls of, them would
return to their own country and in
troduce Western systems of agricul-
tnre, diet, medicine and architecture.
and entirely replace the methods now
in vogue. ass--,~---ss.sy.--
It is ,es7ient from this expression
) OF opinion that Mr.. Denslow is not
as familiar with the motives aud de-
sires of the Oriental as those whom
he describes as hoodlums. No per-
son who has ever given intelligent
1
study to the subject holds the opin-
ion that the Western civilization is
likely to speedily overcome that of
the Chinese. In San Francisco SUI
perior opportunity for observation is
presented. And no one who avails
himself of it will long remain uncon-
vinced that Chinese egotism will
prove complete obstacle to the
adoption of the systems which Mr..
Denslow speaks of SO approvingly.
The Chinaman is as firmly convinced
that the methods in vogue IN his
country are superior to those of the
Western barbarian, as lie is satisfied
that the latter is his Interior in every
respect.
1t would be absurd to make Il SER
ious argument against Mr.. Dcns.ow's
theory of Chinese population, and
his inference therefrom that China is
capable of supporting six times her
present population, for nowhere in
the course of his article does he at
tempt to adduce any evidence that
the portions of China now compare
lively scantily populated are not
sterile and incapable of sustaining
dense populations. 1t has been pretty
! generally agreed by all travellers
that there is a vast quantity of land
in the Chinese Empire utterly incapa-
BILE of cultivation. Mr.. Denslow's
idea that laborsaying machinery may
redeem this land is absurd in the
extreme. Land that will not yield
to the methods of the painstaking
Cel-stial agriculturists can never be
profitably worked by labor-savlng