Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-07-24
(To Be Continued).
A LAND OF SUPERSTITION
Chinese Have Many Strange Ideas
Which to Them are Real.

1t is not always safe to Kill snake
in China. 1t doesn't matter much
whether the snake is Of the water
species or of the land variety, or with
in the reptiles body is supposed to re-
side the spirit of what the yellow men
worship as the Dragon King. This lat
ter is believed by the average super
stitious John to have the power OF
ruling over floods. This Dragon King
represents one symbol in the ritual OF
worship of the Chinese religion called
Taoism.
China practically possessed three
different forms of religion until the
advent of the Christian missionaries.
The first of these religions was in the
form of a philosophy. This still exists
to some extent and is known as Confu-
cianism. The second form has been
recognized as Buddhism, which still eX-
lists throughout China as symboliZed in
the worship Of idols. AS you travel
through the country, here and there
you will frequently run across idols or
Budha located on the hillsides or
other quiet and sequestered spots con-
ducive to reverential reflection. Plenty
of worshipers yet pay their homage to
these Buddhist idols, and you can see
them conscientiously observing the for
NAL ceremonies Of their worship. But
this form Of religion is steadily dying
a natural death since the advent of
Christianity.
The third variety of religious OBJ
servance among the Celestials is that
of Taoism. This was started by an
old patriarch named Lao-tgu, who had
surrounding him a group Of Eight i'm
mortals" as his disciples. One Of these
latter was given the responsibility OF
representing the god Of BARRIERS. The
Taoist worshipers have temples erect
ed in each native town. In those tenn
pies are pictures portraying the hor-
rors of the future life. When the souls
of the dead are ferried across the river
Styx, the artist has painted grew
some thought. Men and women are
depicted as climbing towering noun
tains of ice only to fall back into a
gaping abyss as they nearly reach the
top. AS they fall their bodies are re-
vealed as being caught upon spears
and tossed backward and forward by
deft executioners. These grewsome
pictures show the suffering to be final
ly ground up between millstones. Some
of them show sharp swords slashing to
pieces the bodies which have escaped
the milestone process, and little dogs
are pictured as running after the sur
ferers tapping up the blood. On GER
tain occasions after a death the fam
lily will proceed in a body to these
temples and will hold public wall.
On the drum tower OF the Taoist
temple at Tientsin it has been common
to see richly dressed native merchants
kneeling to an iron pot containing in
cence burned in honor Of his eXcellency
the rat. Other similar disgusting pro-
cedures could be observed. 1t is hard
to conceive that human beings can be
so superstitiouS as to deliberately en-
dure such empty practices Of hallowed
mockery. Yet this is one phase OF
China, the China of today. The few
modernized MOngolians surely have
their hands full in effectively combat
'rg this awful element Of ignorance
1rd bigoted superstition and in holding
heir newly organized republic to the
main highway OF progress.-Philad"l
phia North American.