The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-04-13

nation available in the mass of contem-
porary literature bearing on eastern
subjects.
Most persons wonder why China re-
mains so continually impervious to the
influences of what we call civilization.
The answer Is twofold. In the first
place. the governmental system in
China, having descended almost un-
changed from father to son for more
than 1900 years. teaches in most i'm
pressive fashion the self-sufficiency Of
the Chinese people. discourages immi-
grafton or travel and makes 1t cardi-
nal principle of the national philosophy
If we may thus use the word-that the
customs of the fathers must be imitat-
ed underiatingly by the sons. We may
better understand this latter clause
when we learn that in China the male
parent-for the woman, as will be ex-
planned hereafter, has no standing
whatever except as a creature of child
bearing and burden-is absolutely
master OF his son. entitled to his SER
vice and obedience so long as the par
tlt ll1eS. lie SUI IltNtI DtCOIIltS VI
age, in our sense of the word, until the
father dies. The son must serve the
father so long as the father lives, at the
sacrifice of his own wife and children,
II necessity arise; must honor him with
an extravagant funeral at death,
mourn him for three years. during
which period his wife must not give
birth to child, and offer sacrifice twice
each year, so long as he himself lives,
at his fathers tomb" The family. not
the individual, is the unit in China.
The emperor is supposed to be the
father of all Cinnamon, hence to prop
erly claim the implicit obedience of all
his subjects. And customs handed
down from father to son become not
often empty traditions, as with us, but
vital and venerable obligations ground
ed in the very depths of the China
mans being. The fathers decreed nom
Intercourse with occidental nations;
the sons in duty bound do their best to
obey, and so far as they are modern
lied at all, are modernized against their
will and in violence to all that they
have been taught for a score of CEN
turies to hold most dear
The second reason for China's "offish-
ness"toward pale-faced peoples may be
expressed in the adage that 1.-The
burned child breads fire." The first
real introduction of China to the So
called civilized world In this age was
accomplished by force of British arms,
sent to punish China for destroying, in
1Sic rich cargo of opium which the
British East India company, contrary
to all principles of both equity and in
ternatlonal law, had surreptitiousy
tried to introduce into China, for the
debas-ment Of its citizens. The opium
thus destroyed was valued at Sc, OOO. 900.
Great ',ritain forced China to pay $21,-
100000 indemnity, and Internationally
cede to 1t the important island of Hong
Kong. Later England, at point of
bayonet, forced China to legalize the
opium traffic-or. more properly speak
ing. its opiu,i t-affic-and exacted
other concessions that would, in civil
lied lands, smack of highway robbery,
bnt which, as applied to pagan China,
were regarded as an ''lnevitable con-
quest of occidental ideas" other dem
onstrations which China has had of
christian" diplomacy have been
equally prejudicial to rapid over
throw OF native repugnance to interna-
tional Intercourse.
To these two reasons might be added
a third, In the complete ignorance
which originally existed and largely
still exists in the average Chinese mind
touching Caucasians. Until recently
1t was an offense punishable by death
for Chinaman to be caught travelling
outside the boundaries of his native
land. Centuries Of fattery heaped upon
the Chinese officials by provincial
netghboring countries like Corea and
Slam. had inculcated the idea, that
China was the only land lon the earth
worth considering Therefore, why
should the Chinese care to have deal
ings with milk-complexioned Christian
pagans who greeted them only to abuse
them. rob them and beat down their
l1ne self-esteem?
The government Of China Is patriar-