The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-11-02

This reminds me OF the methou useG III
Chinese schools for distinguishing Chi
nese characters. Now Chinese char
acter is a word-picture. and complete in
itself; some of them are exceedingly COM
pIicated and consist Of as many as thirty
or forty strokes. schoolboys in China
lam ~ c,m oh cbar,cter nv IT'S proper
sonnd botora .han l,,on, its meaning. To
80 49,. - sr.t how IN smell
,t a,s,, ~ h,t is done
=, r,,,i.'
III ohihese schoois.
Learning by Rote.
There have been recent attempts in
Chin, to modify this method of learning
~. .,o.,o,i,g moro
by rote py giving .le uiiue' s'a'''..'e
play. Simple words are explained as 'ne
learner goes along. But. as a rule. inno-
vations of this kind do not find much iaVor
with conservative educators. Still, the
mechanical process of imparting knoWl-
edge has its compensating advantages II
places the wise sayings of the ancients ana
I fine passages Of noted authors at Tue
tongues END Of every student. thus max
ing constant reference to literary gems
matter of second nature
Education in emma consists prlhei pay
in the study OF Cnlnese iahsuase anu iite'
ature. Chinese literature taxes 'ei9
ing from foreign sources. Chihese senoi
airs are. therefore, wen Verseu III tne
triviun and quadriVium OF Chinese ran u.
ing. and, at the same time. iachihs III
knowledge oil matters psTtaih,ns W 49,
so. .ah e noo,,nv bicb nosition in So
cial and political life. They stand at the
, head of the four classes into which the
whole body oil people is Supposeu u NC
1ooI,,d IN IN as leaders of men and WELD
.o,,.orf,,, ;nsuence in mo,ding public
-,
..I ,r, bonnv n cav that there is a grow
ing demand in china for books and papers
r.I,t;,o IN Western arts and sciences
w. :. manifest desire on the part of
~ oo,,;,s, gorerotion nj Chinese to Know
49,, M, Of Tho outside world They admit
( the eunerior knowledge of Western nations
- ,,.han,tics engineering mechanics.
ch.n,;strv mining and other positiye sci
| oncas They avn that they cannot build a
! eteamboat or an electric piant without for
/ eign aid: that thew do not possess single
work Of Chinese authorship which treats
| NJ the frozen north or the African tribes;
{ that thew have no adequate conception Of
J comparative philology. though there is no
| lack of Chinese scholars who have devoted
volumes to researches in the structure and
| origin of their own language. In all these
branches OF knowledge they feel that they
! have much to learn from the West before
| they can put themselves fully abreast OF
| the times.
r,, x.r,t,. co,acr Rule.
| CO.,. o.. ~ ,.,,,,,,,, IN, ro,,,,,to
' a. ~ e -. -
! 'he so'iai iei"'iohs VI in"i' 'h' Ci''t'e
| believe that they have as pure system OF
I! fucius. the great Chinese sage. sums up the
whole duty of man to man in the word
| reciprocity which he interprets to mean,
! DO not do to others what you do not want
done to yourself 1t must be remembered
80, ny ~ u,,ra;,.es = r,,;, liz. 90
! vcars before the nosi,ivo form NJ n wac
/ given out to the world from the mount by
| the Sea of Galilee.
Again, what could be grander than
I these words OF Mencius. another sage OF
| China: l like life. and like also right
! eousness. II l cannot keep the two to-
( Sether VIII let NE go ana choose right
ecushesS. Ike lie. indeea, put there
/ Is that which like more than life. and
/ therefore / will not seek to possess it by
any improper ways
I i do not claim, OF course, that the Chi
/ nese. as people. always live up to this
nigh standard OF morality. They are only
human and sometimes allow themselves to
be carried away by their passions to fear
full excuses. But what people is there on
| the surface of the globe who can boast
of being perfectly blameless on this score
The Chinese are neither better nor worse
than any other peonIe They often do
/ am sorry to say. what is wrong; but
, / apprehend II will not be DISPUTED that
| the same may he said oven of Americans
I and Euroneans ITO orr i. human, Nev-
! orthalass NO oil sho,,Id str;yo 10 A., What
/ is right and above all to do Justice and
! act fairlv tnword our foliow-nan
! hoiufhs fhst 10 the "ooo.
| There is prevailing impression among
| the people of the West that the teaching
! 80 Co,s,,;,, 4; ;.,,,.;-,o. ,;,b r,or,,
Va '' "
| ana progress. Nothins is further from
! the truth. Confucius was reformer him.
! self in his day and generation These
| are his very words: Let a man who is
! living in the present age go back to the
ways of antiquity; on such person cal
amity will be sure to come Confucius
/ inculcates not the slavish clinging to what
! is old, but the holding fast what is good.
More than two thousand years ago liy-
ed a Chinese PHILOSOPHER who undertook
| the herculean task of turning men from
! the error of their ways and leading them
| back to their pristine simplicity and ,.uri-
| ty. His noble efforts were unappreciated
| by his contemporaries But time has add
ed splendor to his memory. Now the
Chinese people hold in grateful remem-
| brance and generation the name OF Men
Gus seooiu ohis ~ e.ia' y. ,'an
n..riot as Veil as q learned nbilosopher
1 He used to travel from place to place in
the hope of finding some prince who would