The Indianapolis journal., 1902-09-21
TRAITS OF THE CHINESE
QUEER THINGS THAT INFLUENCE
THEIR WHOLE NATIONAL LIFE.
Personal Responsibility for Natural
Occurrences-Lack OF National So
Iidarity-Being a Gentleman.



uraIly comes to look upon that country
with the eyes Of a native. Twenty-Five
wears In China has made George w. Catlin,
formerly of the United States. practically
a citizen OF the Celestial empire. Twenty
seven years ago Mr.. Catlin, who was an
employe in a New York tea house, was
sent TO Hong-Kong to take care OF the
Chinese end of the business. and he has
not been outside of his adopted home until
this year Mr.. Catlin is at present visiting
friends in this city, and will soon leave
for San Francisco. where he will take
steamer for the Orient. and where he ex-
poets to spend the next quarter of cen
tury. Mr.. Catlin's knowledge Of the Chi
nese character was got at first hand
and his comments upon the late Boxer re-
bellion are interesting as well as authen-
tic.
THE Boxer uprising proved at least one
thing" says Mr.. Catlin, "and that is that
there is a complete absence of anything
like a national spirit among the Chinese
people; the current events in China prove
another thing-that there is no national
spirit among the soldiers, and that the mil
itary system as well the administration
of the government is rotten TO the core
Midway beween Tientsin and Peking there
is a bend in the Peiho, and on the brink OF
the stream stands half of a ruined temple.
The other half has been washed away Be
low this temple is arranged an elaborate
barrier against the ravages of the river,
composed Of bundles of reeds tied TO stakes.
Half of this has been licked away by the
floods that sweep wrathfully and remorse-
lessly through the valley of the Peiho each
year when the first creamy fuzz is on the
rice fields. The river is half silted up; the
land lies exposed to inundation, and the
nameless gods OF the Chinese creed, squat
ting in the gloom of the rotting temple, are
at the mercy of wind and water. This is
a type of the condition of the Chinese en-
pire.
There are many reasons for this lack OF
solidarity among the Chinese people; but
the most conspicuous, perhaps, Is the elab-
crate system of responsibility that ramifies
through the government and the Chinese
code of ethics. 1t is this principle, the
principle that everybody is responsible,
not only for his own acts, but also for the
acts of somebody else. that is the cause
OF the jelly-like condition Of the Chinese
national life, and accounts for the fact
that an insignificant company Of Manchu
and 10 mold il to their own ends. 10
illustrate this, suppose that a theft or rob-
berry had occurred on street In one OF
the Chinese cities. If the robber were not
captured, the entire street would be held
responsible for the affair, and the shop
keepers along the street would make good
the loss. To the Occidental mind this sys-
tenn Is beyond comprehension, but to the
Chinese it is the logical working out OF
natural law. This law extends even fur
ther. The Chinese are responsible not only
for human acts, but the same principle is
applied to the calamities of nature. If a
river rises in wrath and floods the land.
destroying life and property, the governor
of the province is held responsible. DiSas-
ters by fire, wind famine, pestilence or the
like are even laid at the door OF the official
of the district in which they happen The
luckless officials, who could not possibly
forsee the calamity, usually commit sui
eide rather than be subjected to the degra-
dation and punishment that inevitably fol-
low. 1t will be remembered that so high
an official as Ii Hung Chang was stripped
because he allowed the Yellow river to
swell above the banks. IT was this same
law of responsibility that caused the many
cases Of suicide of Chinese naval officers of
all ranks after the many disastrous de-
-feats in the war with Japan. The China
man-no matter what his rank or caste
does not finch at self-destruction. He takes
life naturally. and 1t matters little to him
whether that life is his own or his neigh
bor's. He will hack off a mans head with
when cutting bread. or he will whittie a
man to pieces as composedly as a 1ankee
would a stick.
THE official class of China are corrupt
NJ. Monnier. the French Asiatic traveller,
tells a characteristic anecdOte that goes tO
show that Chinese commissioners of pub
lie works are not so very far behind some
before the Boxer troubles the Emperor OF
China made up his mind that the streets
of the legations in Peking should be paved
To insure the work being done he himself
provided the money-some $1,000. This
lump sum was handed TO a high official OF
the public roads and highways department
II entered into the mind of this dignitary-
as ii has entered into the minds of count
less generations of contractors-that the
work could be done for much less. He very
soon found an enerprising sub-official whC
undertook the task for 5000 No. had
however, views similar to those of No. l.
and was equally successful in finding a No
3, who. in his turn. considered 81 500 an ex-
.travagant sum for so insignificant an under
taking. The street was eventually paved
for SIS. A Chinese gentleman. Hop Sing, a
Travelled Oriental, a man of means and re-
finement. personal friend of mine, lived ir
the street of the Boosted Corn, as unsavory
and as ill-paved street as there was in al
Peking. Being an intimate friend OF the
local mandarin, Hop Sing availed him
self of this bond to press the
The mandarin was all acquiescence
Certainly At oncei The coolies would be
at work upon it before Hop Sing had re-
turned home. A week passed: then another
visit, and on until, in despair, Hop Sing
determined to have the street repaired al
his own expense. The work was satisfac-
torily completed. The surprise of Hop Sing
was equaled only by his Indignation when,
on awakening one morning, he found a
gang of workmen tearing up the newly
tagged street. His surprise grew when he
heard from the mandarin's own lips that
the men were there at his orders. You see
my dear friend said the mandarin Il aru
expecting the head inspector round here in
few days. Now, If he were TO see the
beautiful pavement you have laid down In
your street he would come to the conclu-
sion that there was money about, and he
would assuredly bleed every vein in my
body. This would mean my ruin. DON,
you see why the pavement really must
come up? IL cost me one fortune to secure
my post, and don't want TO spend another
IN keeping it, This is typical OF official
China of to-day. From the highest man.
DARN down TO the most insignificant pro.
vincial ku-yang. IL is a system of extortion
Tammany Hall could not work the graft tc
better advantage.
STUDY OF POLITENESS
I'm China the art of being a gentleman
Is sedulously cultivated. There is a whole
vocabulary of words that are indispensa.
bic TO the celestial who wishes to pose as
a polite person. words in which whateve,
relates to self is depreeiatory The polite
Chinaman will refer TO his wife-if driven II
the extremity OF referring to her at ali
as his dull thorn. or as his 'stinkfng vou