Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-08-25
CHINESE CIVILIZATION
ITS ANTIQUITY SHOWN BY THE
AUTHENTICATED RECORDS.
Scheme of Administration Same as 1t
Was More Than Two ThOus.
and Years Ago.

1.-THE origin of Chinese civilization Is
lost in obscurity," is the striking obser-
walton made by Harold E. Gorst of Edin-
burgh. Scotland, who, writing on China,
gees on to say: Its immense antiquity
may be gathered from the fact that
historical records that go back to nearly
5000 years before the Christian era pre-
sent the people Of China in much the same
state Of culture as that in which they re-
main today. The present system OF gov
eminent dates from the reign of Chi
Hwang-t. about go years before Christ,
who originated the scheme of administra-
ton which has been followed by every
succeeding dynasty for more than 1900
years. Immense progress was also made
under the long line Of Chow emperors. when
the agriculture Of the country was largely
developed under the direction OF skilled
officials who were appointed to superin-
tend irrigation works and to instruct the
people in improved methods of cultiva-
ton. In this way the resources of the en-
pire may be said to have been evolved.
But for countless generations before the
government took the material welfare OF
the population in hand in this patrtarchal
manner the Chinese were a highly cui-
tured people, with an established literature
and an admirable social organization.
Monuments of the skill and industry OF
bygOne ages have been handed down TO
posterity, as a living proof OF the glory OF
past achievement, in the shape Of magnih-
cent canals and bridges Under the Sung
dynasty admirable broad highways were
constructed, paved with stone and shaded
by avenues Of fine trees; but these nave
been permitted through the gross negh.
gence of local authorities to fall out OF
repair. While in many places, through the
uprooting of both trees and fagstones-
misappropriated for fuel or building pur-
poses-they have been entirely destroyed.
alc ND hri6
main. The former supplement the river
systems in China, and almost the entire
carrying trade of the empire Is effected
by means of the junks which swarm along
these Waterways. OF the iron suspension
bridges by means of which many rivers
are crossed in western China, travellers
have often enough spoken in eulogistic
terms.
Proficient In Shipbuilding.
In shipbuilding the Chinese have been
proficient for centuries. Marco Paulo
speaks Of large four-masted vessels, con-
tanning fifty or sixty cabins, which are
used for trading to and from the islands
in the Pacific Their hulls were built, he
saws in water-tight compartments and
some Of the biggest junks were manned by
two or three hundred sailors. The Chi
nese were the first to build ships in COM
partments, and 1t was in imitation of them
that a similar method was employed in
more recent times by European construct
ors The highest praise has been given TO
the Chinese for the skill with which they
manage their vessels. Their river naviga-
ton is superior to that of any other ma
ton, the junks being handled with consum-
mate ingenuity. 1t was the Chinese also,
who first invented the compass. which was
used by them more than fifteen hundred
years ago.
Without the aid of western science Won
derful results have been achieved in the
industries of China by the invention OF
oil 10Th OptrfVancQa
lates how salt manufacturers in Scechuan
utilize volcanoes for furnaces with perfect
safety, which may certainly be regarded
as a high test Of dexterity. For their
mining operations the Chinese use torch
made Of sawdust and resin, which burns
brightly without flame and does not ignite
the inf1ammable gases in the shaft. Met
ais are worked, and great bells cast, with
a precision and finish that may compare
favorably with similar productions Of Eu-
ropean workmanship. The manufacture OF
porcelain is carried on, chiefly In the prov
ince of Kiangsi, under the most perfect
system of divided labor. So advanced, in
fact, are the Chinese in respect to art pro-
ductions that an extensive business Is
done, as elsewhere nearer home, in Skillful
limitations of ancient ware. which Is
much priced by Chinese amateurs as 1t Is
by European collectors. The antiquity of
porcelain manufacture is great, the finest
specimens Of China vases dating from the
Han dynasty, at the beginning Of our era.
Junk Travelling on Waterways.
OF all methods of locomotion in the Chi
nese empire, the most agreeable by uni
versal consent, is junk travelling the
waterways. The weather. classes go about
to a great extent, and for their con-
venience comfortable and well-fitted boats
are on hire at all the chief inland ports.
Besides these there are, of course, public
1unkS, which do not offer many more COM
forts than are to be obtained on board an
ordinary steamboat, and which possess the
same disadvantages of being overcrowded
and dirty. The usual mode of travelling in
the southern provinces Is by water; but in
the north, and In those districts which do
not possess good river or canal communi-
cations, there are other and more painful
means Of transport. In the first place,
there Is the palanquin, which corresponds
more or less to the sedan of our forefath-
ers. The bearers Of these aristocratic
conveyances accomplish the most surpris-
ing feats in the way Of climbing noun
tains crawling along the edges of a
precipice; but 1t Is a fatiguing thing to be
shut up for long journey in q box
Should, however, the palanquin be re-
Jected. there II only a choice Of evils. The
wheelbarrow, a favOrite vehicle in the
north. seems scarcely compatible with the
dignity Of the travelling European. in spite
Of the superiority conferred upon 1t by the
hoisting of a sail in favorable wind and
there only remains, unless horse or an
ass be ridden by preference. the alterna-
1--WE or driving In sprfngleSs cart The
jolting Of the latter on the shockingly ne
elected roads Is so fearful that upsets are
the rule rather than the exception, and it
is to the frequency Of these accidents that
Hue attributes the skill Of the native doc
tors in setting fractured limbs.
Basis of Literary Examinations.
Education may be said to be completed
by the study Of the nine classical books
which form the basis of the literary ex-
aminations. OF these. one of the most in
teresting Is the Shi King. or Book of
Odes. collected by Confucius. It consists
Of collection of popular songs current in
various districts at different periods during
the centuries preceding the philosophers
birth. and contains, as may be supposed,
an excellent reflection of the state Of So
ciety at that remote period. On these
classics the whole foundation of Chinese
literature rests. It has been, until lately
the chief aim OF scholars and writer's to
increase the sum of annotations and learn
ed commentaries on the nine books, in
preference to producing original works
Such works as the "Encyclopedia Rri-
tannica" pale before the monumental labors
of Chinese compilers. One Of the first
Ming emperors ordered an encyclopedia to
be prepared which consisted, when 1t was
finished. of 22,937 books The MS was
never printed but remains in the Imperial
Library at Pekn for exclusive consultation
By the son Of heaven.