Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1894-05-23
against Chinese sunday-school.

|
of trouble in Chicago over the Chinese
Sunday school question. If Chicago en-
tiers into internal dissension with the same
torrent of energy which she displays when
combined against common enemy, the
prospect of general falling out there
cannot but make the hardest shudder ;
but possibly the present difficulties may
be settled without vigorous measures.
The trouble in question seems to have
been brewing for some time, the actual
outbreak being precipitated by a recent
banquet rendered their teachers by the
Chinese Sunday.school of the First Pres
byterian Church. We need scarcely say,
perhaps, that it is the Chicago men who
are rising up against the Chinese Sunday
school. Already they are organized un-
der the title of the Anti-Chinese Sunday
school Society. The society proposes to
"agitate against the custom of allowing
young girls to act as teachers in Sunday
schools where each Chinaman has a
teacher to himself" This certainly does
seem like wanton extravaganza in girls.
The visible supply of girls is always linn
ited-in fact, there is generally distinct
shortage in girls, as in most other good
things-and when it comes to drawing
off a girl for each Chinaman it leaves an
actual stringency in girls which is posi-
lively painful. The young men of Chi
cago ask why one girl won't do for ten or
a dozen Cinnamon. Their idea is that at
least as many Cinnamon as this can listen
to the instruction which falls from the
lips of a girl Sunday school teacher as
we'll as one. But the Chinese have diff
ferent views, and vigorously adhere to the
one Chinaman one girl tenet. In fact,
they won't come to Sunday school at all
under any other conditions.
The Anti-Chinese Society, however,
does not base its crusade on the depletion
which the system makes in the ranks of
the girls, but on the charge that the mild
and guileless children of the Middle
Kingdom are unmitigated scoundrels,
who come to Sunday-school solely to en-
joy the society of the young women teach
ers, one teacher to each unmitigated
scoundrel. AS horrible example they
hold up Mr.. Mock Moon, the president
of the Chinese Christian Endeavor So
ciety. On the very day of the banquet
he had been arrested and released. The
childlike Moon, however, explains this
by saying that he was arrested because
he refused to give cigar to policeman
and it cannot be denied that, heather
though he be, he has, in his poor blind
way, hit upon story with a certain
amount of plausibility in it. 1t shows
that man may bow down to wood and
stone and still make considerable study
of policemen out of the corners of his
eyes.
1t seems at this distance that the new so.
ciety has good-sized job on its hands, be-
cause not only are the Cinnamon opposed
to any change, but the teachers as well.
There are in the school forty-nine schol-
ars, and as many teachers, all but five of
the latter being young women. These
five are men, and the Cinnamon under
their guidance are said to complain Bit
terly," and hold on at all only in the
hope of better things. The thirty-fve
young women are reported as "enthusi-
astic over the Chinamen," whom they
find "just lovely" and gentle as chill
dren." They of course rally round Mock
Moon, and applaud his noble refusal to
give the unscrupulous officer the cigar,
even though he knew that he must suffer
arrest in consequence. Just how the
"Antis" are going to work is not stated
beyond the somewhat indefinite remark
that they will "agitate" Agitation will
in some cases do great deal, but it can
never accomplish much against thirty-fve
determined young women. A young
woman is probably the most discouraging
thing to agitate against which there IS
She may frequently be successfully coax
ed, but seldom agitated against. The So
ciety should be on its guard lest the
young women begin themselves to agitate,
and agitate it out Of town. The police,
too, should cease to make demands upon
the bland Mock Moon, or they also may
get taste of agitation. The public at
large is looking on with interest.-Har-
per's Bazar.
..C,roof Tho TDJauc,f,.o