Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-10-02
The Story of Civilization
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Most buildings were Of modest
height, and the roof was their only
glory; in many instances three roofs
were laid one over the other with
graceful recurved caves, as If the form
had developed from the tent; and
often the whole was covered with bril-.
liantly painted tiles. Under the caves
and in the interior, wood delicately
carved in queer designs showed the
inclination Of Chinese art to decora-
ton rather than construction. Only
the temples and pagodas rose to the
dignity Of several stories; and even
these had a certain fragile quality in
their grace. like the beautiful Porce-
lain Tower Of Marking, which was de-
stroyed in the TAPPING rebellion in
1854.
r + r
1t was In porcelain that China top.
ped the world, and through porcelain
that her name became a household
word in lands that knew nothing Of
her greatness. Large part Of every
museums pride is it's Chinese pottery;
not even the Greeks could equal it.
Early as the Hen dynasty cos BE-
221 ADJ it became supreme. One
AID. the imperial porcelain works
employed a million people. But most
OF the kilns were destroyed in the
TAPPING rebellion, and the art Of the
potter rapidly declined. For art and
war are restless rivals, and man peri.
odically interrupts creation in order
to kill.
In cloissonne approximately the
same process Of burning colorS into
copper as porcelain work Is the burn.
ing of colors into clay), in the cutting
of jade and ivory. in the making of
bronzes. the working Of brass, the
carving of lacquer-in all Of these
subtle and complex arts the Chinese
have been masters. And finally in
painting they have produced not the
greatest but the finest work in his
tory. Slowly the art evolved from the
decoration Of walls. panels and pot
terry, until 1t grew into delicate water
coiors on paper or silk. 1t specialized
above all in landscape. where 1t has
never been surpassed; in the represent.
tation Of distance and filmy horizons:
in the following Of water wandering
among hills: in the study Of animals
caught In their natural lairs; and in
such quiet scenes as a fisherman
drifting idly on a lake, or a philoso.
pher musing under the moon. It is
true that these paintings ignore the
laws OF perspective" and the uses of
reflection and shadow; but they have
mystical suggestiveness. and
technical and spiritual perfection,
which have been the idol and despair
Of many modern artists in the West.
Nevertheless the greatest and most
characteristic product of the Chinese
Is philosophy; 1t Is wisdom rather
than beauty that we find in their faces
and their history. Not mere knowl.
edge; In science the West has gone
far beyond them. Time and again
they made discoveries which with
us have revolutionized life: and then
they dropped them and passed on,
seeking not power but peace. They
had great physicians before Hippo
crates, and knew 1000 years before
Harvey the circulation Of the blood;
they invented the compass, made gun
powder flor fireworks and not for
war;. and developed a credit.system
before 900 AID. But these were little
things.
The great thing was to deepen and
quiet the soul with understanding.
Lao.tse succeeded by one way, Con.
fucius by another. and when they died,
Chinese philosophy had still long GEN.
turtles before 1t, and supreme names.
Chuang.tse Fourth century B.C.) fol.
lowed Lao-tse's lead. pleaded for a
government that would govern least
and praised the life that would most
conform to nature and be most con.
tent with natural things. He scorned
materialism in life, but in theory he
united strangely the skeptic, the ag.
nostic and the idealist:
Coming into existence with this
mortal coil OF mine, with the exhaus-
ton OF this mortal coil the mandate
OF the soul will also be exhausted
The body decomposes, and the mind
goes with it; this is our real cause
for sorrow. Can the world be so
dull as not to see this, or Is 1t I alone
who am dull, and otrers not so? .
Let knowledge stop at the unknow.
able; that is perfection. -
Once upon a time I, Chuang-tse,
dreamt was a butterfly. fluttering
hither and thither. was conscious
only Of following my fancies as a
butterfly. and was unconscious of my
individuality as a man. Suddenly I
awoke: and there was. myself again.
| Now ! do not know whether ! was
then a man dreaming was a butter
fly. or whether am now a butterfly
dreaming / am q man"
*
Mencius fs72-2s9 B.C) preferred
! Confucius. and spent his life in de.
| votedly expounding and spreading the
masters philosophy; but there Is a
radical tinge in him which marks him
as man who dared TO do some things
for himself. He dema nded universal
education. free trade ana single tax
he attacked trusts, profiteers and mill
tarists, and said that there had never
been or would be a righteous war