December 14, 1903.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
437
pheasants have been sent to Hongkong to be CORRESPONDENCE. what are described in the pulpits as the cardina stuffed and presented to the City Hall Museum.
THE ANTI-SMUKING VICEROY. The Viceroy does not smoke even a cigarette, and hates persons that smoke. It is said on pretty good authority that he intends to put a tax apon opium-smokers in Kwangtung and Kwang- si of five dollars a year, for a license.
HINDRANCES TO EDUCATION,
Most of the colleges in Canton are closed or going to be closed, simply because of misman. agement or misbehaviour on the part of the teachers or pupils. The Kwong Nga College, for instance, in which English and Chinese are taught is shut on account of friction between
masters and pupils.
PAKHOI.
[FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. |
Pakhoi, 5th December. PIRACY NEAR YAMCHOW.
MISSIONARIES AND THE PRESS.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "DAILY PRESS."]
Hongkong, 4th December. SIE,-To answer your recent remarks about missionaries was so easy that probably this is why no one thought it worth doing, but there are still some simple people who are led by leading articles, and a word is due to these poor sheep.
I am not a missionary, and do not hold a brief for missions, but being weary of ignorant abuse of people who after all are God's creatures I would like to advance some extenuating circumstances why all the missionaries in China should not be hanged. Of course missionary methods, like newspaper methods and all other methods in this imperfect world, are not the best, but only the best that have been discovered. Why did not the writer of the article reveal A big junk left this port on the 23rd ult. for better ones? The second point of the article was Fong Sing, & port near Yamchow,, with a
that very old criticism that the charity of valuable cargo, it is said, to the value of over
missionaries should begin at home, that they $6,000, including a few packages of native should not abandon the peri hing British opium, and treasure amounting to some $4,000. heathen. This generally comes from those who All went well until the junk was near Yamchow, have gone abroad themselves like the writer of when two saspicious-looking junks were sighted, the article, or from those who are asked to and on approaching, one on either side, their subscribe to home missions. In Great Britain manoeuvres betrayed evil intentions. The people are said to be Gospel hardened, so much skipper of the trading juak intended to alter are they evangelised. There is a chan e for her course to avoid them if possible, but the everyone at home to at least hear of Christ's passengers, amonest whom there were eight Kingdom. Asa matter of fact, however, nothing braves insisted that the juok should proceed does the home Church 80 much good as without fear, as they had arms and ammunition thinking and working for the Church abroad. to resist any attack. In a short time, as the It is the old story of the traveller in Russia. pirates were drawing nearer, volleys were
When on the point of perishing from cold be fired on the junk. The soldiers at once
stumbled upon a man buried in the snow. returned the fire, but the struggle did not He sat to work to pull him out and rub him, and last long, for the pirates were soon on board the exercise kept his own blood in circulation. the junk, killing no less than twenty-one That Church does most for the heathen at people amongst the crew and passengers, in-home that does most for the heathen abroad. cluding the braves, whose courage cost them their Money lent to the Lord in obedience to His lives. After taking everything worth having command to vangelise the world is well into their boats the pirates deserted the junk. invested. At the present time there are in Three of the crew, who had concealed themselves Canton English missionaries who are mainly during the slaughter, then managed to reach supported by Christian Chinese living in Aus- Yamchow. The authorities there, on learning tralia. One day America and Europe may the news, telegraphed to Pakhoi for a gunboat become not merely almost, but altogether to cruise for the pirates, and the An-lan was heathen, and we shall get a good return for despatched, but she returned soon, only to record the money advanced if Chinese and Indian one more unsuccessful expedition against the Christians are sent to reconvert us.-Yours, etc. pirates.
A FARCE IN THE HARBOUR.
Some two weeks ago, a most laughable farce was enacted in this harbour. A juuk arrived about midnight with a troupe of native actors on board. When about to drop anchor the passengers assembled in a crowd on deck, and in their eagerness to got ashore they made a great noise calling for sampans, which aroused the suspicion of the sentry on board the Chinese gunboat Fuk Po, lying not far away. He thought that the big crowd was a party of brigands descending on the town, and opened fire on the junk. The people on board naturally became alarmed and began to shout at the top of their voices that they were actors and not pirates, when the firing ceased. By this time the guards ashore, on hearing the discharge of fire arms, had sent a few men to the beach to learn the cause of it, but their presence was only use- ful to add to the hearty laughter amongst all concerned on learning the true state of things, Fortunately nobody on board the junk was hit.
SPORTS.
I hear that the community is going to be treated to athletic sports again this year during the approaching festive season-probably on Christmas Day. The affair, it is said, promises to be an improvement on that of last year, and there will be more prizes to be struggled for.
A Seoul despatch of the 24th November says: -The Governor of Wiju wires to the Foreign Bepartment that nine Russians and ten Chinese arrived at Kindo Island and drove away the residents from five cottages, declaring that the buildings were required by them for the trans- portation of timber. Attempts on the part of the Governor to stop the audacious behaviour of the Russians have proved futile, and he has therefore applied to the Government to open negotiations with the Russian Minister" in order to stop the Russians from such illegal Botion.
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E. J. HARDY. (Chaplain to the Forces.)
MISSIONARIES AND THE PRESS.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY PRESS.'
doctrines of the Christian faith, and I warrant quite 95 per cent. of those young men would be set down as extremely unorthodox. Undoubtedly Enrope and America are slowly emancipating themselves from the thraldom of a body of religious doctrine which has been reared on a foundation of superstition and profound ignorance. China undoubtedly offers a fine field for the faith which the West is discarding; but when Europe and America shall have become "altogether heathen "I would prefer to say rational in their religious beliefs-the future missionaries from China whom Mr. Hardy's prophetic eye pictures reconverting the nations would meet with far less success than the Western missionaries ought to achieve in China to-day.
Let me not be understood_by these few observations to infer that I entertain any strong objection to the presence in China of the Bix
or seven thousand missionaries who are now scattered throughout the length and breadth of the vast empire; nor would I be disposed to say even that in conditions of society such as may be found in all parts of China, the doctrines which no longer appeal strongly to more enlightened peoples are al- together powerless for good here. The preaching of such doctrines in China must, in their conflict with existing faiths, serve to stimulate thought, and that is one of the primary and most pres- sing needs of China. Let it be remembered also that a missionary does not carry with him only his body of religious doctrines; he stands among a strange people as a type of another race-a messenger from Mars as it were and as he ua- folds to a benighted people his knowledge of the arts and industries and wonders of the West till, as in the case of Goldsmith's village parson,
the wonder grew
How one small head could carry all he knew.” he becomes conciously or unconsciously a mis- sionary of commerce. In this light, I fancy, most of us prefer to view the missionary, and for this advantage much in the way of tactless efforts to proselytise is cheerfully forgiven.— Yours, &c..
UNORTHODOX.
MISSIONARIES AND THE PRESS.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY PRESS."
Hongkong, 8th December. SIR,-I note that the Rer. E. J. Hardy has come forward to address the⚫ simple people," those " poor sheep" who do not thoroughly understand the great benefits of Christian missionary work. The Hongkong, 6th December. rev. gentleman treats the subject in his SIR, The Rev E. J. Hardy. Chaplain of the well-known humorous style, which, however, Forces, over whose signature a letter appears in is more entertaining than convincing. Mr. your columus on Saturday on the above subject, Hardy claims that "money lent to the Lord in hath, undeniably, a pretty wit, but if his letter obedience to his command to evangelise the contains any serious argument in support of world is well invested." Waiting the point carrying a knowledge of the Bible into foreign that Christ instructed his disciples to os ry lands it has been effectually obscured by the wit- neither purse nor scrip, there still remains the ticisms which corruscate in almost every line. question of investment, From a commercial So far as I am able to discern signs of argu-point of view there are not a few business men ment in the letter, it appears to me as a curious ly inconsequential epistle. Mr. Hardy first tells из that in Great Britain people are said to be Gospel-hardened, so much are they evangel sed; and yet he concludes his letter with the observation that " One day America and Europe may become not merely almost, but altogether heathen." 0. Mr. Hardy, may not subscribe to the first of these state- ments which he is careful to attribute to other people, but he apparently has clearer views concerning the second. If by the term "heathen" he mesas definite rejection of the supernaturalist doctrines of the Gospel, I am inclined to share his prediction; bat it would be extrem ly interesting to have this confession of the failure of the Gospel to take hold of men's hearts and minds put clearly in cold print by a clergyman.
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who would agree that to "lead to the Lord in obedience to his command to evangelise the world" Was a sound investment. To give money for evangelising purposes in the hope of gaining a commercial return is probably considered a good stroke of business.
To give money to the cause in the hope of reward, hereafter is on the same line of self-interest.
This type of investment was probably not intended by the rev. gentleman. Perhaps he wanted to infer that to invest money in the promulgation of the Christian religion meant the moral and intellectual advancement of all the peoples that embrace it, and the consequent interaction for good was a beneficent invest- ment. Are we justified in drawing such an expectation from the past history of the Chris. tian world? Has hristianity always meant the moral and intellectual advancement of the Mr. Hardy may be regarded as more of a man peoples that have embraced it? The history of of the world than the average parson, and he the intellectual development of Europe does not probably knows better than the great majority lend any support to the claim. For centuries of the men of his cloth that among the rising there was a deadlook in science, a stagnation in generation of the mankind in the West the art, and an utter abandonment of all intellectual legends of the Bible are finding a meagre and progressive pursuits. For centuries the acceptance as articles of faith. Take any group | history of Christianity was the history of per- of intelligent young men and let them answersecutions-sect upon sect. Christianity found- honestly, aye or nay, whether they believe ined the inquisitions, it applied the rack,