The Russellville Democrat., 1884-04-24

WHOSG IHftfflfe& 'Att &4Mlr3I. AU8$tY I0~ gether with all who are drowned at
 sea, or die in battle or in foreign lands, and whose bones therefore can not be deposited in the family resting ipiatb,
 constitute a perpetual source of peril to |.the entire community. Hence the prb-
 lie subscription festivals, the chief of
 which, Ch'ing-naing, falls about the be-
 ginning of April. Sacrifices are then
 made all over China for the benefit
 of those whose burial places are not
 known, or, if known, have nobody to
 sacrifice to them The hope is by this
 means to provide for and appease tho
 lost. whose irritation might otherwise
 endanger the peace q the whole coun-
 try. The dead are of course invisible,
 except to those who by sustained fast
 ing have approachedto the condition of Rthe more luckless among the spirits, or,
 moved by evil consciences, have, seen
 the ghosts which come to warn them of
 theft backslidings and niggardlilnaess,
 To supply invisible beings the offerings
 themselves must be made invisible.
 otherwise they might share the fate of the sacrifices on the Buddhist altars,
 which are eaten by the, crows and the
 pariah dogs. Everything, therefore, is
 burned. When a man dies, his best suit
 of clothes is forthwith burned. to insure his making respectable appearance
 down below. Huge models of houses, temples. and furDiture are consumed at
 the funerals of rich men.
 Dien is the ordinary saerilice at the three great deceased ancestor feasts. This dien, or money for. the dead, is
 n substitute for sycee. It is thin rice
 paper, coated over with t;nfoil, and got
 up in the form of sveee. Richer peo- pie have it gilt and the. poor use in-
 stead coarse yellow paper cut into the
 shape of cash. At the festival of ACh ing-ming and tho otbcr charity solemnizations, immense quantities of
 dien are burned all long the streets, the rivers, canals, on She br dges, at cross roads, junglc-paths, jetties. and
 in fact everywhere where it is possible that destitute spirit may De wander ing in want of money to support him in the world of darkness. This ancestral
 worship has compete hold on the Chinese mind. Ifsthe Tanist religion
 has not actually sprung from ravarence for the dead, 1t is at least now it's most fervent supporter, and the priests of that faith make much profitby mc.liating be- tween the living and the dead. The
 Buddhist bcnzes, in self-defence, have adopted inc same tactics, and the tiliaI piety taught by the fol lowers of Confu- ttius certainly does not tend to weaken the practical working of the doctrine of prop.tiation of the dead. x In China,
 therefore, we have the most elaborate form of this propitiation of the dead;
 but it is not only there that 1t exists.
 Ancestral worship is the most obvious characteristic of the religious notions of the Ameri an Indians. Itformed prac- tcally the state worship of Poru The living Incas worshipped their dead fore fathers. ,Tbe village communities q {, reverence to the first founder, or to some famed warrior or dreaded sorcer- CT, and individual families seek for peace of conscience in making offerings to their remotest ancestor, and hoard 'tip dried corpses for the purpose of talk ing them round to see the croFs. Dead 'corpses, growing crops, and pious agri- culturists all derive much benefit. and peace of mind from the proceeding. The method and philosophy of the Chinaman are wanting, but the idea is the same. fs eEE
 It might be supposed that with these views ancestor worshippers would be, as chary of taking life as the most rigorous Buddhists. Thls is, however, very far from being the case. There is no more systematically boodthirsty fighter than your spirit-fearing Chinanan. He scoils at 1ily-livered Western soldiers who rather prefer wounding man to killing him. That is not the Chinese idea of carrying on war at all. When he has Il man down he makes sure of him and cuts his head off. Now this, in view of the worship of the dead, is most risky proceeding. There is no surer way of getting into trouble in the kingdom of darkness than appearing there without any head On the face of it, this sug- gests misbehayior above ground, and the rulers below make such new conner coolic, or boatman, or even. if he seems 10 be particularly bad character, a policeman. Thus you have so many uneasy spirits created to vexl living humanity 10 the fullest extent of their sense of injury. Their remains above ground are probably tossed about anyhow, and not a stiyer of dien comes their way once in twelyemonth. There can not be. therefore. any doubt that such victims of the gooIl old rule will do their utmost to revenge them. selves for their il-treatment on folks in the world of lght. And, as a matter of fact, they do make them pay a pretty penny, which, however, goes into the pockets of the Tauist priests, and not to the sole benefit of the headless goblin. If man gets fit of indigestion, or if loose W ndowpan rattlci at night, or q beam creahs, he forthwith imagines a hungry demon devising mischief, and summons a priest next day to perform Koong-tuh meritorous service to qri ct the sprite. A feast is laid out in a vacant room, properties are bnnt to any extent, and occasionally the hiero- phant, besides supplying these things at his own price, sets the goodman of the house to make q guy of himself. exe- cutting cuts and passes at particularly malevolent demons. Nevertheless, in spite of all this additional trouble eau ed by beheading people, there is no hopo for the Pea ee-at-any-Price Society to l establish a working branch in the Celcs- tial Empire. There is no resisting the of cutting peoples heaas of 1 when ore gets the chance. It is eSpens- i've, but it is worth the money.-Satnr- etay Recier. M
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