New-York tribune., 1901-02-25
THE CHINESE POINT OF VIEW
A CELESTIAL ESTIMATE OF WESTERN
PROGRESS WHICH is FRANK. IF
NOT FLATTERING
Letter in The Saturday Review.

Letter in The Saturday Review
A note in your issue Of last week rafars mia,
touch of indignation. to the advocacy bv M
De Martens of the policy China for the rbi
nese-" That the source from which the proposa,
emanates should be regarded by YOU win So
picion is natural enough and on that head tber.
is notnlng which 1t would be profitable for me 10
to open my lips and to ask your permission m
set 1orth in the pages Of your journal soma
views on the whole situation in China uhinh
have long been crying for utterance OF the i'm,
mediate crisis 1 do not propose to speak N "a
my object rather (f you will allow mel 10 assist
the British public to a tuster estimate of nv
countrymen and their policy, by explaining as
far as 1 am able the way in which we regard
Western civilization. and the reasons we have
for desiring to exclude its influences. For such
a task l conceive myself to be not aItogethar
unfit A long residence in England gives me
some right to speak of your institutions, while
absence from my own country has not disduai-
fed me to speak of ours. A Chinaman remains
always a Chinaman. and much as I admire IN.
some Of its aspects the achievements Of Western
civilization, have yet seen nothing which
could make me regret that / was born citizen
of the East. To EngIishmen this may seem a
strange confession. You are accustomed to re-
gard us as barbarians. and not unnaturaIly for
IL Is only on the occasions when we murder your
compatrlots tnat your attention is powerfully
drawn toward US. From such spasmodic out
breaks you are apt overhastily to infer that
we are a nation Of cold bloOded assassins, a con-
clusion as reasonable as would be an inference
from the present conduct of your troops in China
to the general character Of Western ciyiIization
We not to be judged by the acts of our
mobs. nor even. 1 may add. by those of our
Government, for the Government in China does
not represent the nation Yet even those acts
(StrOngly as they are condemned by all educated
Chtnamen) deserve, | venture to think on the
part Of Europeans. consideration more grave
and a less Incorporate reprobation than they
have hitherto received among you. For they are
expressions of q feeling which is and must al
ways be the most potent factor in our relations
with the West-our profound ristrust and dis
like of your civilization. This feeling you (natu-
rally enougn attribute TO prejudice and ig-
mo- In aIf + ipIr
based upon reason. and for this point OF view
would ask the serious and patient consider
alton of my readers
THE VIRTUE OF STABILITY.
Our civilization is the oldest in the world. It
does not follow that it is the best but neither
submit. does 1t follow that ii is the worst On
the contrary, such antiquity is, at any rate a
proof that our Institutions have guaranteed 70
us stability for which search in vain
among the nations of Europe. But not only is
our civilization stable, IL also embodies as we
think a moral order. while in yours We detect
only an economic chaos Whether your religion
be better than ours I do not at present dispute,
but II is certain that it has less influence on
your society. You profess Christianity, but your
civilization has never been Christian whereas
ours is Confucian through and through. But to
say that II is Confuciar is TO say that it is
moral. or at least (fOr / do not wish 10 beg the
question: that moral relations are those which
it primarily contempletes. Whereas. with you
$50 IT seems to u.s. economic relations come
hrst. and upon these you enceavor a1terWard 10
graft as much morality as they will admit
This point L may illustrate by a comparison
between your view Of the family and ours. To
you. far a foreigner can perceive, the
family is merely means for nOUTiShing and
protecting the child until he is of age to look
after himself. AS early may be. you send
your boys away TO a public school. where they
quickly emancipate themselves from the tnnu-
ences of their home. AS soon as they are OF
age you send them out, as you say. 10 make
their fortune" and from that moment often
enough. as they cease to be dependent on their
parents, so they cease to recognize obhSauonS
toward them. They may go where they VIII, GO
what they will, earn and spend as they choose.
and IL is at their own option whether or no
they maintain their family ties With you the
individual is the unit and all the units are Tree
No one is tied, but also no one is rooted Your
society. TO use your own word, is progressive
you are always moving on Every one Lees
il a duty (and in most cases IL is necessltyl 70
strike out new line for himself To remain n
/ the position in which you were porn you con-
slider disgrace; man. TO be man. must
venture, struggle. compete and win TO ths
characteristic of your society Is 10 De attrlOute
no doubt its immense activity and its success IN
all material arts. But to this also IS due the
feature that most strikes Chinanan-ltS uI
rest. it's confusion. it's lack (aS we thlnk) OF
morality. Among you, one is contented, no
one has leisure live, so intent are all on IN.
creasing the means Of living. The "casn-neAus,
(to borrow a phrase OF one OF your own writers
is the only relation you recognize among meh.
Now. 10 us of the East all this is the marx oL
q barbarous society. We measure the deSIeo
of civilization not by accumulation or the means
of living but by the character and value OF ths
life lived Where there are humane and
stable relations. reverence for the past, no
respect even for the present. but only eup.G lI
nous ravshment Of the future there we tnInh, ~ M
there Is TO true society. And we would not I've u W.
could rival you in your wealth. your sciences anu anu
your arts IL We must do so at the cost OF lni-
tating your institutions.
THE WELFARE OF SOCIETY FIRST.
In all these matters own procedure is tns
opposite 10 YOURS We look first TO the soclely
and then TO the Individual Among US II is
rule that a Is born into precisely 1noss -
lations in which he is TO continue durihs u.
course of his life. As he begins. so ne ehuS, o
member of his family group, and 10 ths rs; eT re-
dition the whole theory and practice OF ms ~ ~
conform He is taught TO worship ms ahSssSor ars
10 honor and obey his parents anu 70 - a
himself from early age for the duties a g.;
husband and a father. Marriage does hot w. .S.
solve the family; the husband remains anu -, 80
wife becomes a member Of his group or Alns-
men, And this group is the soclal Unit uhle. - Lear
its common plot OF ground It's com GoLi'Ci iis1r+es
and rites its tribunal for settling dispute'
among it's members. No man IN emma ls i'
lated, save by his own fault. II IL Is 3sAsr NO.
easy for him to grow rich as with you, . he.'L .ss
is in so easy for him 10 starve; If he has not ths
motive 10 compete neither has ne the lesLp s1 tbs
to cheat and 10 oppresS Free at olcG u - dis
torment of ambition and the apprehehsIO ~ I;.jor
tress he has leisure 10 spare from the L
of the means of living for lie ltSe4l AIc
both the instinct and the opportunity 10 appa pars
ciate the gifts of nature. TO cultlvate .5 ra~
and TO enter into humane ana dlslIIeieS. = +vne
lations with his fellows the result Is - horh
which we cannot but regard as supeIlUrI, ~
morally and esthetically. to the great ,3T IEA va
your own citizens in Europe ana W. W. and
recognize the greatness or your PtASt--
scientific achievements vet we find ii 1mpOssI@o.S @
unreservedIy to admire a civilization ~ WIlCn -
produced manners so coarse. morals So tOw wbJeh
an appearance so unloveiy as those Win Ia
we are constantly confronted In your Srea9 Ill a
Admitting that not what you ~-ass -
progressive people, we yet perceive tnat oTvn
NAV he bought TOO dear We prefer our o" a
moral TO your material advantages. anu hfch
determined 10 cling TO the tnsututIOhS + rne
we believe insure us the former, even a.
risk Of excluding ourselves from the tneItSIaN ISI,sSIaN
I. JOHN CHlNAMAN'