New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1922-04-05
(The Ne1U RepubNc) f
America and Chinese Education

~ oAAAo
country and who was an active leader IN
the Students Revolt in 1918 in Picking,
recently remarked to me that the conduct
of the Chinese official delegation in Wash
ington had led him to reflect upon Chinese,
higher education. Or rather, he thought
their course was a reflection OF Chinese
education in certain Of it's phases He re-
garded the delegation as having talled
essentially in their task. He recognized
that conditions in China and also the
exigencies of American politics-or what
the American representatives took to pc
such-had a large share in the failure
of China to accomplish her aims But ne
said there was another failure for which
the Chinese delegates were responsible:
there had been at Washington no repre-
sentative voicing of existent Chinese ma
tional sentiment. Certain practical fall
ures might be conceded to be inevitable;
but there was only one explanation OF
the failure to express the active contem-
porarv attitude of the Chinese people,
and that was found in unrepresentatlve
qualities in the delegates.
So far his view of the situation is OF
primary and practical interest to the
Chinese. 1t concerns Americans only as
thew are sympathetic with China and de-
sirous of seeing her just aspirations prop
erlv expressed. But the connection of
the fact he cites-if it be a fact-With
the state of the higher education OF the
Chinese touches us closely. All three OF
the delegates are American educated;
two of them studied in missionary insti-
buttons conducted by Americans in China
before they came to America to study.
And these two-the diplomats of the dele
gation-are those whose methods have
been most unsatisfactory to Chinese at
home and in this country. The third
member, the one who had not come under
missionary auspices in his preparatory
education in China, is the one who is
regarded as most nearly representative
of present day China. Now the educa-
tional conclusion which the student-1eader
had drawn was that American missionary
education has failed to- develop indepen-
dent, energetic thought and character
among even it's most distinguished grad
yates. 1t has produced rather subser-
Went intellectual type, one which he
characterized as slavish. ~
The literal correctness of his premises
and his conclusions need not be categori-
cally affirmed. It is easy to deny the
premises, or to hold that they are too
slight to bear the burden of the conclu-
sion. There are not many non Chinese
who know enough to judge the situation
few who can judge. But one thing can
be positively affirmed. The view in
question expresses belief that is widely
and increasingly held in China. It con-
tains elements that are of prime impor-
lance. 1t suggests the attitude of the
Young China Of today as distinct from
that Young China which figures in the
writings OF men like Mr.. ]. O. P. Bland,
who if not important in himself is impor-
tant as the spokesman of a definite class
of foreigners in, China who have been the
most influential persons in purveying infor-.
nation and forming foreign opinion about
China.
The Young China of which the Bland
School speaks consists of group Of
foreign educated men, of whom the two
diplomats of the official delegation at the
Washington Conference are good repre-
sentatives. Young China viewed from
this angle means men who have gone
into politics, domestic and diplomatic,
with Western, usually American, preeon-
ceptions, and who have tried to force
Western, usually American, political con-
ceptions and methods upon China. They
have failed, failed tragically, it is said,
because of the intrinsic unftness Of their
conceptions and methods to immemorial
traditions and customs and engrained
racial traits Of the Chinese people in1-
memorial, atavistic and racial are the
literary slogans of this school of foreign
commentators on China. The failure.
goes back to the well -meaning efforts Of
missionaries who have him Glad haca11sns