The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-03
OkUMA, CALLING CHINA DUPE OF "GOLDEN AGE."
SAYS THAT SHE HAS ONLY HERSELF TO BLAME

vi
upon the past with profound veneration.
Thes have their ideal In the past. while
most people ave II In the future. They
lament over the degeneration Of the
present, while others laugh at the cru
dity Of the old.
The Chinese again have missed the
spirit In outward formalitles 70 which
they have attached e~xtravagant impor-
lance. Three hundred etiquettes and
5000 dignities." Ia their common phrase.
Flowery. but spiritless. expression OF
thought Cor no ~thought) In the neces-
sary outcome of this tendency. The Dip
loinatic language used by M~achiavellian
politicians Of her anarchical periods OF
1000 years ~ commands admiration
even In these days.
The great Emperor shih OF the Chin
dynasty. who rose on the debris Of the
Chou dynasty, wisely discerned the in
trinsic worthlessness Of the Chu-Tzu
school. which expounded the doctrine Of
formiiities. He detested the hollow
dream OF the Golden Age. To clear the
country OF those vexatious scholars he
buried alive several thousands OF them.
lie destroyed all their books and docu-
men's. Then he promulgated "the re-
gime Of the criminal law" noted for Its
uure,enting stringency. He believed In
the omnIpotence Of Jurisprudence. In
stead OF the troublesome doctrine of for
malitlcs he adopted the teaching OF Lao
tsu. who recognized nothing but the es-
sential substance. I.ao-tsu was the
great philosopher who advised Confucius
to abandon his meaningless formalIties
and silly ambitions.
II only the Chinese had continually
observed the directions given by this
shrewd tyrant they might present a very
IiHarant Aanast axy
they chose the other way. When. at later
times. the political foundation Of the
Han dynasty. which replaced the Chin
dynasty. became firm and mistaken
Emperor WI could not remain satisfied
with the simplicity OF the essence doc
trine OF Lao-tsu." In order to add to
the dignities OF the crown he introduced
many vexatious rules and prolific forms.
For this end he considered the form
doctrine" OF Chu-Tzu quite convenient.
After experiencing great difficulties in
collecting the necessary materials. most
~ which could hardly escape the whole
sale destruction Of Emperor Shin. he
succeeded In reviving the school OF Chu-
Tzu, once almost annihilated by the mer-
ciless persecution Of the Chin dynasty.
A little later. however. at an official
meeting OF scholars. the inefficiency
for political purposes OF the doctrine Of
formalities was publicly recognized.
After that II was abolished In the mar
row circle Of state politics. but has not
ceased to difuse widespread influence
over the characters Of private individuals
In the way OF worshippine spiritless for
malities and o~stentatious etiquette.
X. Lack Of Religious Originality.
The Chinese call their own country
ssfha .>antre If ciNtliyastpt, - THAI nptar-
tain an extremely arrogant idea Of their
fatherland. giving the title OF the Sur
rounding BARBARA MS to all foreign coun-
tries, And In this centre of civilization
there is no national religion worthy OF
tho name This In a fine contrast to
ancient Greece. where the progress OF
material civilization and the incom-
parable development Of sciences did not
hinder the growth Of a polytheistic re-
iigion which ~worshipped a number Of
strange dieties. The Greeks were 50
arduous In their faith that they went so
far as to massacre those who refused
to follow their national religion. The
case IL different with China. The Chinese
were completely satisfied with the ethi-
cal teachings Of their sages. whose con-
ception OF heaven was not much more
tina the blue skies vague and INFINITE.
Buddhism was heartily welcomed by
the Chinese. The desperate attempts
Of the Chu-Txu school to expel the faith
which they denounced az heresy were
futile. The prosperity Of Buddhism con-
tinued for more thar one thousand
years. This attests TO the fact that the
Chinese were passively susceptible of re-
ligious faith. although they did not pos
itively create their own. After the lapse
Of a thousand years Buddhism gradually
commenced to decline. There now re-
mains the old teachings OF vexatious
formalities devoid Of vital spirit.
NJ. The Chinese Hieroglyphics.
The Chinese inclination for formalities
has led TO the extraordinary develop
ment Of hieroglyphic characters. which
In the course OF time. owing to China's
immense territories being divided by
rivers and mountains n to he great
variety OF races. multiplied to more than
coo. 900. They came to Judge OF the abll-
lily OF a statesman BY his mastery Of
these complicated characters. Even
those savage tribes who overthrow Chi
nese dynasties one after another could
not suppress the use Of these horrible
symbols, Traditional hieroglyphics are
adopted by the conQuerors. They are
now 5000 years old After such a long
tradition II Is now absolutely impos-
sible to dissuade the Chinese from the
use Of those symbolic characters. sou
venirs OF the golden age. which some Of
the later historians call an idealized
state OF society that did not really exist.
XII. Chinese Follow Q Sort Of
DemOnism.
Human nature changes only through
a species Of evolution TO which the
Chinese is inaccessible A~daptability
to surroundings. the survival OF the
%fittest, these fundamental principles
find among the Chinese no sanction,
The successful competition OF The
Greeks with the Assyrians. the Baby
l%onians. Egyptians. Carthaginians and
PhPnicians. the decline OF the I'D
Greek prosperity and the rise Of the
Roman Empire. the growth Of the
Teutons OF the ruins Of Roman civili-
cation. all these were the necessary
steps in human evolution leading to
the enlightened European civilization
Of to-day. To the Chinese several
thousand years have been as a single
day, Year in and year out they stay
In one spot. Etiquettes and ceremonies,
and representation. these are their
fondest weapons, Instead OF wisely
providing for the future. they are salts
fled with averting the present danger,
When the situation becomes too serious.
when their artful diplomacy becomes no
longer available. they rely for assist
ance upon those who cannot really be
relied upon. just like those sa val es who
resort to demons" In the face OF dan
gers that could he easily removed by
cool Judgment. advise the Chinese to
follow the example set by the Japanese
to adapt themselves to the eternal