New-York tribune., 1896-09-01
III HUNG CHANGS VISIT.
GOLDsMITHs IDEAL A PRESENT
REALITY.
PRESENT
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE ORIENTAL AWAKEN

ING AND WHAT 1T MAY LEAD TO-
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Goldsmith's curious collection Of essays
called The Citizen OF the World" was given to the
English public at about 17e0 First serial letters
in The Public Ledger" and next in two volumes
May. 1872. They attracted lively attention. and
have never passed OF notice and frequent cita-
tion. Almost exactly one hundred years after. III
Hung Chang then Governor-Genera of the Klang
Provinces, China asked for and obtained the SER
vices of n British officer to command the National
forces striving far without avail. to suppress
the Taeping rebellion. That officer was Charles
George Gordon since better known as "Cnlnese
Gordon" and he succeeded in what he undertook
to do.
The object and the interest Of this collocation are
readily traced. Goldsmith's purpose was that OF
depicting. rather satrizng. the manners of his
country, under the guise of Chinese sage
visiting England, and describing. In series OF let
ters, what he there: and the general effect OF
his portraiture is gained through vivid contrasts
between what he has been used to and what he
to see, together with an implicit sug-
gestion of the superiority of the former
A passage or two furnishes ready illustration
Lien Chi Altang" the sage in question. is speak
ing of the streets of London THE houses borrow
very few ornaments from architecture; their chief
decoration seems to be paltry piece Of painting
hung out at their doors windows. at once proof
OF tncr lndlgence ana vanity, tnelr vanity III edcH
having of those pictures exposed to public view
and their indgence in being unable to get them
better painted In this respect the fancy Of their
painters Is also deplorable Could you believe 1t?
have seen five black lions and three blue boars In
less than the circuit Of falf mile. and yet you
know that animals of those coors are nowhere to
be found except in the wild imagnations OF
Europe"
The Sage soon after ventures on the dangerous
md Of
sentiments most reverend Fun. the ladies here
horribly ugly; can hardly endure the sight OF
them; they no way resemble the beauties or China
The Europeans have quite different idea of beauty
from When / reflect on the small-footed per-
fections of Eastern beauty. how is it possible
should have eyes for a woman whose feet are ten
inches long? | shall never forget the beauties of
my native city of Nanfew How very broad their
faces How very short their noses. How very little
their eyes. How very thin their lips, How very
black their teeth. . Here lady with such
perfections would be thought frightful Dutch and
Chinese beauties have. indeed. some resemblance.
but English women are entirely different; red
cheeks big eyes. and teeth of a most odious white
ness are not only seen here. but wished for; and
then they have such masculine feet actually
serve some for walking,
What is called the historical novel usually follows
history, but imaginative writing of any sort less
frequently foreshadows history. The visit to the
smiths famous lsquerade may herein, with inter-
est and profit be considered together. vast dis
parity, it Is needless to say, exists between the
significance OF the two-as thus. that one is real,
the other supposltItious and that while one laughs
chiefly at social usages the other may affect poten-
TALLY the dcstinies of nations. But, recognizing
the magnitude of this last suggestion and the dis
sent 1t may first sight provoke. let us hasten to
set forth the reasons that Justify it.
l. Huns Chang is to begin with. a statesman. not
of average, but of eminent distinction. General
Grant said he had abroad four really great
men-Beaconsfeld Bismarck. Gambetta and Ii
Hung Chang The Chinese statesman Is of mature
years-seveny- -four next birhday-and of remark
able experience He knows many things. and per-
haps, among these he knows his countrymen
better than any man alive But he knows other
men. too He knows instruments among men, ana
how to choose them and his choice of "Chinese Cor
don" a critical moment is proof in point which
has been convincing in the East as in the West.
Now. why does this remarkable parsonage appear
in Europe and in America at this time? On this
point there is much conjecture but only conjecture.
General Grant went to China part of a tour of
rest and recreation. But Ii Hung Chang can have
no such motive this. What thes, is his motive?
1t must be remembered that he is a patriot as well
as a pubncst, and that his vast and venerable
country has just suffered disastrous defeat at
the hand of d smaller Power. Dignity, prestige,
dynasc stability, have all been shaken by the Japa-
nese victory Asia knows II, and Europe knows IL,
and America knows it, and Ii Hung Chang knows 1t
as well. maybe better. than ALL What, then, and
again, does his visit mean?
He knows his country. He knows what China has
and what China lacks. He knows she has an
enormous population-with her dependencies-prob-
ably superior to that of all Europe put together.
And what does China lack? You can put it in one
But Cinnamon can't fight it is objected; they
are like children" Yet whatever measure of sup
port this assertion may have In precedent or his
tory it is wise recolect that there IS no rasher
fallacy than to suppose that because things have
to be. Moreover it was with children-the French
It is the impossible that always happens It is not
be suppose that the wits and journasts-or what
nave ppophesied the results of the proceedings Of
Ghengis Kahn, or Tamerlane. or Alorc or Attila or
history repeats itself, and the huge waves OF sue
cessfu invasion have ever rolled from East to West
In fine Napoleons unfulfed prediction that within
time now nearly elapsed Europe would Id be e. either
summa ted in the century TO come-readng for Cos
The patient toiling Oriental, who carries a spell
to exercise ali distaste for monotony, will do any
thing forever, he knows how. 1t makes little
difference whether one hundred pounds. or two
hundred pounds is behind Winchester rifle. and
baby hand press the button that lets loose the
terrific artillery powers Of the air
China Is destined to arm and to arm on a large
scale She is surely destined TO be laced with
are Of necessity each complement Of the other
European and American officers will for time at
sSss ever W victorious army-so it was called before
Chinese Gordon" came to lead it-had been previ,
ouslv commanded by the Americans Ward and
Burgevine. But Gordon was a major general OF OF
China and t is likely that West Point men may
hereafter forward on far larger scale the
There Will be no menace in this; certainly not to
Japan To prepare is to avert. The British flying
squadrons. so much talked OF year ago, nave de,
stroyed no commerce as yet and battered down no
cities. u, 49,. -
And here It may judiciously be recalled that CT
all promnent Cinnamon, Ii Hung Chang Is the
most liberal as regards what may be called modern
imnrovements He believes In railroads. Goa! min
Ing and traffic 1t may be doubted II he
would even persecute Chimes, Edison In this. as
I'm all other equipment. he may be styled the man
for his country and for the hour. .
Apart from other considerations Japan is the
ENGLAND of the East. She too. may be called a
golden isle set in a silver sea-" While China grows.
ss She will grow into formidable military power,
Japan will develop doubt, into potent mari