Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-21
CHINESE NEWSPAPERS
Increase in Number, Circula-
ton and Influence.
EVIDENCE OF PROGRESS
YEARS.
Extensive Facilities of the Mission
Presses-Society for Diffusion
of Christian knowledge.
EVIDENCE OF PROGRESS


of Christian knowledge.
| BY VIM. E. CURTIS.
Written for The Evening Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.
| Chief among the most remarkable evil
dences of progress in China is the increase
in number, circulation and influence of the
native newspapers. -Four years ago there
were no native newspapers in the empire
| except the ancient Peking Gazette, which
is the oldest periodical in the world, and
has been printed regularly for more than
5000 years. It's appearance and style have
| changed very little during that time. 1t is
still printed from engraved blocks instead
| of movable type, as has always been the
case. 1t is a small pamphlet, which be-
| gins at the other end, and, like all Chinese
books and papers, the lines run up and
| down instead of horizontally. 1t appears
| almost every morning, and contains the
| edicts and official announcements Of the
government with paragraphs concerning
the movements of the emperor and the
court. But it cannot properly be called
a newspaper.
Formerly none but foreigners dared pub
lSh newspapers in China, but now they are
found in every town of Importance through
out the empire, and are allowed considera-
BILE freedom-much more than one would
suppose. The extent of their candor IN
discussing public affairs depends upon the
disposition of the local magistrates. In
some places editors are allowed to COM
ment as freely as in the United States, and
to advise the government as our editors
do. Elsewhere they have to be very care
full what they say. But the fact that they
are allowed to exist at all is of itself a
significant sign of progress, and through
out all China. regardless OF the conservat-
ism of the people and official censorship,
they have more liberty than the newspa-
pers of Russia or Turkey and some other
countries, and almost much those of
Japan. If all editors were discreet, if all
were reasonable, If all were just honest
and truthful, they would enjoy greater lib
critics than they do, but yellow journalism
prevails in the celestial empire quite as eX-
tensively as in this land of barbarianS
and there is an irresistible temptation in
China as elsewhere to use printing press
improperly and for the injury of others.
Domination of the Japanese.
Before 1895 the only newspapers in China
were published in English French and Ger
man. The missionary printing establish
mentS turned out magazines and other re-
ligious periodicals, but outside of Hongkong
and the foreign concessions in Shanghai,
TienTSin and other large cities that were
under the jurisdiction of American or Euro
pean conSulS such a thing was unknown.
During the so-called reform movement in
1898 large crop of papers, about sixty in
number, sprang up in different parts of the
empire, intended chiefly to express the
views of reformers and others who were
trying to promote the progressive move
ment, but after the coup detat, when the
empress dowager came back into power,
most of them were obliged to suspend and
we're not published again until recently.
The japanese have outstripped all other
fOraipnprS utilizing the. printipg %
educate and express public opinion. They
have newspapers in Picking. Tien-Tsin.
Shanghai and other cities, most of them
printed in the Chinese language, and they
exercise powerful influence. The influence
of the Japanese in China during the last
five six years has been greater than that
of all other foreigners combined. and they
are carrying out the policy of their govern
ment. Formerly all the foreign teachers in
China were Americans or Europeans. About
1900 the japanese began to come in, and at
present 20 per cent of foreign instructors in
the government schools, colleges and uni
versities Japanese. Their influence is
extending in proportion. AS instructors
they are acceptable to the people well as
to the government, and they are considered
competent to guide and elevate the people
to the highest degree of western civiliza-
ton. Unlike our missionary educators, they
have no religious convictions to hamper
them, but their general example and teach
ings are for good.
IISI Su1hOSS 1CIlOQlCdl.
The first periodical published in the Chinese
language was semi-religious monthly call
ed Wan Kwoh Kung Pao CA Review of the
Tines by Rev. Young ]. Allen, who went
out as a missionary of the Methodist
Church South in 1859 and has been in
Shanghai ever since. From the first num-
Der. issued in 1868, for fifteen years Mr..
Allen did all the editorial work and paid
oil I,a 10 do 1ip
and gained a circulation of 4 600 and a good
advertising patronage. In 1889 the Society
for the Diffusion of Christian knowledge
took it off his hands and has since issued it
as a nonsectarian. semi-literary monthly
treating all subjects from Christian point
of view, but avoiding theological questions
and all appearance of PROSECUTING. Its pur-
pose is to enlighten the Chinese people on
current public affairs throughout the world
and its motto is Before all it is necessary
to know The magazine pays for itself
and brings in a little revenue to the So
ciety. DR.. Allen remains as editor. He Is
the pioneer and dean Of the literary colony
in China and has published more books in
the Chinese language than any other for
eigner. DR.. Allen wrote a history of the
war of 1895 between China and japan to
decide which was to control Korea and
presented the facts so impartialy as to
evoke letters of commentator from the
emperors of all three of those countries Ii
hung Chang, who practically conducted the
war, gave DIR. Allen the use of all the rec
ords and correspondence of the government
relating to that subject.
First Chinese Newspaper.
The first daily newspaper in the Chinese
a1guage was published at Hongkong, but.
as that is an English colony, it's appearance
was rot significant. The first daily publish
ed elsewhere was the Shen-Pao Ga news
paper'o. at Shanghai. 1t is still running
bu. publishes very little news. 1t is con-
sentative iE its policy, clings to the old
ioeas, supports the empress dowager and
her government and is anti-foreign in it's
sympathy. although at present its editor is
wise enough to keep silent on that subject.
The progressive paper is called 1.-The Uni
versal Gazette" 1t is an enterprising, fear
less advocate of foreign methods and mod
ern ideas, and does not hesitate to criticise
the imperial government or the local magis-
trates whenever 1t considers them deserv-
ing of criticism Being in the foreign set
Element and under the jurisdiction of the
British government such audacity is safe
but elsewhere 1t would be promptly sup
pressed. There are several other papers of
radical pro-foreign tendencies, but they are
all printed in the foreign concessions and
most of them ostensibly owned and
edited by foreigners although their capital