The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1914-05-01
"Rice Christian Has Had His
Day, So Ills Claimed
CANNOT FOOL THE MISSIONS
Independent Church Has Been Organ
lied In the Big Country Of
Yellow Men
LAssociatea Press pIspateh.l

Hankow, China, April 29.-The
Christian" that type OF Chin.
csc convert which was easily won
over to any creed so long as he was
supported in idleness, has had his
day, according to the American
Episcopal Mission in this city. The
missions of all denominations today
are making their appeal to the bet
ter class. There was a time when
missionaries came to China with
the idea, that there was no time to
lose in mastering the whole army
of Chinese under Christian stan
dards. To make rice Christians"
was easy. For daily supplies Of
rice, millions of beggars and coolies
could be induced to swear they were
believers in anything But that was
not converting China. There were,
however, few missionaries of any
denomination who worked SO un-
wisely. In the present day such
men have a hard time living in the
mission community. II cannot be
said that the man of fanatical en-
thusiasm has been entirely elimi-
mated but the average type of mis-
sionary today is far more practi-
cal.
Convert Their Own People.
It is the idea OF the Episcopal
missionaries and their British as
sociates to prepare Chinese to con-
vert their own people. They point
to the recent formation of the indie
pendent Holy Catholic church" in
China, which is conducting its own
affairs. This successful establish.
ment of an independent" church,
the first in China, is the result Of the
system OF education conducted Joint.
ly by the church of England at
home and in Canada, and the Epis-
copal church of the United States.
In the matter of preaching, the
Chinese themselves cannot be beat
en-. Phraseology prescribing virtues
is the common stock-in-trade OF most
politicians. The politician knows by
heart the best and longest passages
OF the Chinese classics, which
abound in admonitions to certain
virtues. To know the classics was
the first requirement, under the
Manchu rule, for eligibility to office.
The man who could repeat the great
est length OF words from them was
considered the greatest scholar and
shown the great difference by the
nation. He was of great advantage
to the government because II was
the fashion and the trick to embody
extensive declarations of piety,-o,.
ten quoted verbatim from the
sages, In the imperial edicts. II
words were deeds China would be
splendidly righteous and well-gov-
erned country. But even those edicts
which appeared years ago abolishing
such evils as slavery and footbind-
ing have not yet been put into force,
and continue even under the re-
public. ~, .,...
Ten Years Of Study.
From the theological school of
Boone university, which requires
over ten years OF study, Chinese
pastors go to convert their own
people. The Chinese have recently,
Of their own accord. sent q mission.
airy to remote walled city in the
south of this province, seven days
journey away from the Yiantze
river.
Some Chinese are able to 90
abroad to get their knowledge of
foreign things, but most of them
have to turn to the mission schools
and colleges. The government sought
to supply the demand and engaged
foreign teachers for the state uni.
versities. In these cash compensa-
tions were granted students for at.
tending but politics and corruption,
lack of discipline prevented them
from being as efficient as what the
missionaries offer.
The Wuchang government uni
yersity, across the Yiantze from
here. should be one OF the great
centers OF teaching in this country,
but having no money, II has been
unable since the revolutions to pay
a foreign stan, consequently the
Chinese of this district 20 to Boone
university. the American institu-
ton there, which has over three
hundred students
Il