The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-07-21

Christians were excluded and the
priest has been not only the spiritual
guide but also the temporal ruler. When
they had paid their taxes to China, they
had discharged the only duty they owed
to their country. The priest protected
them against all exactions of the provn-
cial authorities, and argued their case in
person before projects and governors.
Although the foreign Protestant mis-
sionaries have not heretofore as strenu-
ously defended before the local authori-
ties the rights and privileges of their
fiocks as have the Catholics, nevertheless
they have done so sufficiently to make all
their Christians feel that they were up
held by some one or more foreign Power,
and that they could successfully resist
the petty exactions and vexations COM
mon from time immemorial to all Ash
attic governments"
A writer in The Independent June 2D,
Henry Liddell, NJ. D.. quotes from small
book published in China for the purpose
of combating the Christian religion. 1t
is entitled "a Death-Blow TO Corrupt
I Doctrines" and has had an enormous cir
culation, one person having paid for the
distribution of 100000 copies. 1t has been
translated by the Christian missionaries
! themselves for the purpose of letting in
/ Eight upon the character of the opposi-
/ ton they encounter. Here is one of the
passages descriptive of Christianity:
/ THE religion of T'ien-chu Git, Sect
of the Lord of Heavenly originated with
Jesus. Its adherents falsely assert that
Jesus was endowed with divine gifts. .
Priests are for the most part edu-
Gated to their profession from their child
hood. They are emasculated.
Those who enter this religion practice
wickedness with the priests without re-
straint. Every seventh day all assemble
in church. When the ceremonies
are over all give themselves up to de-
bauchery. This they call the Great Com
munion, or Love Gathering! .
They make use of occult and devillsl
arts and bewitch the ignorant by magical
arts and lamentations. so they joyfully
enter the sect. When person en-
tiers this religion the teacher gives hin
four ounces of silver and a pill. WheT
he has taken this pill his whole mind 1.
confused and darkened. so that he de
stroys his ancestral tablets and only
worshps an image of naked child which
points one finger toward heaven and an
other toward the earth. They say this
is the Prince Jesus. Families havinl
daughters, on entering their religion, re
strain one of them from marriage. Thes
: are the guardians of the locks and key
of the chest containing magical spells
and incantations. They are called 'th
old women who open the chest II
case of funerals. the religious teacher
eject all the relatives and friends from
= the house, and the corpse is put into tn
[ coffin with closed doors. Both eyes ar
secretly taken out. and the orifice scale
e up with a plaster. The reason for ex
tracing the eyes is this: From one hun
dred pounds of Chinese lead can be ex
: tracted eight pounds of silver, and IN
D remaining ninety-two pounds of lead ca
5 be sold at the original cost. But the onl
S way to obtain this silver is by compound
n ing the lead with the eyes of Chinamer
h The eyes of foreigners are of no use fo
a this purpose. 1t Is impossible I
G enumerate all their practices If we see
: for the general motive which leads {
d them. it is a fixed determination utterl
e to befool our people, and under false pre-
e tense of religion TO exterminate then
l. Thus they wish to take possession of til
l. Middle Kingdom"