The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-04-29
RICE CHRISTIANS NO LONGER SOUGHT
 BY MISSIONARIES
Old Prostelyting Methods Done Away With in Chinese
 Fields.
xzsnversion of Educated Glasses Is Now Sought By Denom-
 anational Workers.

HankoW, China, April, zSs---Ins s>r1ce-Christian' that type of Chinese convert which was easily won over to s-~v creed so long as he was support sd in idlenes4 has had his day, ac- cording to the American Episcopal Mission in this city. The missions of all denominations to-day are mak- ing their appeal to the better class.
 There was a. time when missionar- ies came to China with the idea that there was no time to lose in muster ing the whole army of Chinese under Christian standards To make rice Chrfstians was easy For daily supplies of rice,. millions of beggaTs and coe1ies could be induced to swear they were believers in anything. But that was not converting China.
 There were, however. few mission aries of any denonnfnation who work ed 50 unwiseIy. In the present day such men have a. hard time living in the mission community. It cannot be said that the man of fanatical en- thusiasm has been entirely eliminated but the average type of missionary to- day Is far more practical
 Tt is the idea of the Episcopal mis- sfonaries and their British associates to prepare Chinese to convert their own people They point to the re- cent formation of the independent --Ho1y Catholic Church in China. which is conducting it's own affairs This successful establishment of an ssindependent' church, the first 1n China is the result of the system of education conducted jointly by the Church of England at home and in Canada and the Episcopal Church of the United States.
 In the matter of preaching, the Chi- nese themselves cannot be beaten. Phraseology prescribing virtues is the common stock-fn-trade of most poltti- clans The politician knows by
 Ar- ~rs<sfw <ausra rrraeua af the Chinese classics, which abound in admonifions to certain virtues. To know the classics was the first re- nuirernent, under the Manchu rule, for eligibility to ofhce- The man who could repeat the greatest length of words from them was considered the greatest scholar and shown the great est deference by the nation
 He was Of great advantage. to the government because it was the fashion declarations of piety-often quoted verbatim from the sages, in the inn periaI edicts If words were deeds China would be a sp1endidly righteous and weIl-governsd country: But even those edicts which appeared years ago abolishfng such evils as slavery and footbfnding have not yet been put into force and continue even under the re- public.
 From the tf1eoIokfcal school of
 
 ten years of study Chinese pastors go out to convert their own people. The Chinese have recently. of their own accord, sent missionary to remote walled city in the south of this prov fnce, seven days Journey away from the Xiantze river
 Some Chinese are able to go 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 universities. In these cash compensaticns were granted stu dents for attending but politics md corruption and lack of discipline pre- vented them from being as efficient EE what the missionaries offer
 The Wuchang Government univer- 'nity, across the Yiangtze from here, should be one of the great centers oi teaching in this country, but having no money it has been unable since the revolution to pay a, foreign staff consequently the Chinese of this dis frict go to Boone University, the American institution there. which hal over three hundred students.