The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-01-16

well known American text books which have been translated into Chinese. l saw also stacks of my own Geographical Readers" published on cheap paper, with abominable illustrations l was told the whole series had been prepared for the press, and that my books on North Amer ica and Europe were already in use. The matter has been translated by the En- glish- Chinese scholars, and, as far as possible verbatim, but how correctly only those who can read the Chinese tea-chest characters can know.
 As I looked at my books the manager of the company said they sold well and that he expected to get good revenue from Carpenters "Asia," which was then in the press. He explained apologeticai- ly that they had been forced to change some of the literary matter in the chap ters on China, as their people did not like to sbe told they had buttonhole eyes, pig tailed heads and deformed feet He made no bones about taking my books without pay and even offered to make a royalty contract With me if would write him a new reader or so especially adapted, to the Chinese market. I replied that was very busy, and he thereupon suggested that the book could be written for me in their office. and that I could revise it. But in that cgse they would expect to pay a much less royalty. I told him such a proposition was out of the question; but notwithstanding this he brought it up again and again, and urged 1t upon me at a Chinese dinner which he gave me that night.
 Among the other books in the ware house l saw piles of Chinese English dic- tionaries. They were in two volumes, each as big as an ordinary table Web- ster. They are practically a translation of the Standard Dictionary which is so largely used in the United States. They were edited by Dr. Yan, who has been connected with our legation in Washing ton, The two volumes are widely dis tributed; they sell for about S6 in gold. The pocket dictionaries are also printed, and u native law dictionary is now in press. This will be sent out to the law schools, which are now being established at all the provincial capitals.
 School Supplies.
 After visiting the editors I was taken to another large building which contains curious branch of this publishing house. It Is devoted to school supplies, and makes everything from desks to blow pipes for the chemical laboratories It manufactures pendulums globes, Indian clubs and dumbbells. The dumbbells are cast from pig iron; they are made In great quantities, and it is intended they
 
 Every room of this school book factory is lighted by electricity, and all are con- nected by telephone system. The ma chinery is up to date and on the whole it shows one something of what is going on in the new China.
 Mission School Books.
 At present large proportion of the new text books are printed upon the mission presses The missionaries have been at work in China for century, and they have established schools in all parts of the country. They were the authors of the first new text books, and as teachers their graduates are in demand, The American Presbyterian mission press at Shanghai has been pouring out volumes for a number of years at the rate of so.- GOO, ,000 pages per annum. and the consol- dated mission press of the American Methodists has also published numerous educational works. The American Bible society distributes between half million and million volumes of the Scriptures in Chinese each year, and there is now & mission educational association, supported by all the Protestant sects, which is pre- pairing new text books for the schools At some of the missionary stations they arc making school museums including such things as stuffed birds and animals. mounted fishes, electrical machines. globes and model railways. They have printed charts of tho Chinese provipees, with the principal industries and re- sources marked upon them and have in- augurated new methods of teaching the people. Indeed, the work which the mis- sionarfes have done cannot Do over