The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-03-10
CHINA BEING PLUNDERED.
Her Antiquities Are Being Ruthlessly
Taken.

| New York, March l0.--In a monograph
called "Plunder and Destruction of An
| tiquities in China" the Asiatic Institute
| of New York calls attention to the van
dalism that has appeared in China by
which she is being ruthlessly piundered
of her antiquities.
| The statement places the responsible
ity for this situation on the development
of the present European museum and
collecting system. 1t constitutes an APP
a halt in this widespread plumber, often
involving bloodshed, in the interests of
science and of fair play for China and
her coming generations.
The monograph contains private Off
cial and public papers. 1t voices China 5
protests thus:
"The Asiatic institute has received
Chinese protests dating back six years
emphasizing Chinese adherence OF the
European system, whose practices have
now invaded China. These practices are
widespread pillaging of temples and sa-
cred places of the dead and other an
cient works in Africa and throughout
Asia, in the name OF superior civiliza-
ton, punitive warfare, science or other
subterfuge. They protest against the
introduction into China of a foreign
conception of time, of science and of
history by newer nations whose sense of
antiquity as peculiarly exemplifed in
their museum system enables them to
participate in and foster the destruc-
tion and robbery of holy things"
The havoc and destruction referred to
is specified as follows:
"In the revolutionary interregnum be-
tween the winter of l9ll-12 and the
summer of 1918, sculptures and other
antiquities native to China underwent
destruction on a large scale by foreign
and native vandals in the interest of
foreign dealers and museums.
I'm 1913 there was a general divi-
sion among museums of the world in
Guiding at least two American museums,
of several hundred cases of seulptural
fragments broken from their settings by
one and the same body of vandals. This
evil has grown up so suddenly--it has
come about since l90S--that foreign peo-
apprehended it. No one is aware of it
except the museums involved, their
agents and Intermediates and the
alarmed Chinese"
In statement made to the Associated
Press, the secretary of the Asiatic insti-
tute SAYS:
"All signs seem to indicate that depre-
dations have commenced upon the arch
Biological and art wealth of China to
an extent even greater than the van
dalism with which Europe visited the
art and beauty of the shores of the
Mediterranean The market for Chinese
antiquities, particularly sculptures, came
with the close of the Russo-Japanese
war, but no nation bears the stigma of
being chief vandal in China. The mar
ket is an international one, and has been
developed under Japanese and European
direction, with Paris as headquarters.
So well has the market been worked by
the dealers that the increase in prices
of Chinese sculpture in the past five or
six years has been 40 or 80 times. For
example, one piece of sculpture of North
Wei times-ninth century, A. D.-esti-
mated to have cost $500 in China, after
passing through only two or three hands,
is held by a dealer at $4,000. One
American museum has 10 stone beads
broken from statues in the interior of
China. All large museums of the world
have, or are acquiring, similar frag
ments. Collectors and museums in
America are sending special representa-
tives to China with large sums of money
to buy. Similar expeditions are setting
forth from Europe.
Realizing the menace to the sculp-
lures of China, the Asiatic institute is
cooperating with the China Monuments
Society of Pel1in, whose committee is
composed of the foreign ministers at
Pekin of Great Britain, Russia, America,
France, and Japan-men who see the sit