November 27, 1805.]
A HONGKONG SCHOOL.
When people in England think of Hongkong they are apt to remember the place only as a tiny red dot on the map. And when they think of Chinamen, sometimes they imagine them to be a sort of funny people, rather like clowns; whereas they are really very much like other mortals when you come to know them Their sobools are not so very unlike English schools. There are in Hongkong two schools reserved for scholars of European British parentage. There are also several big colleges where English is taught to Chinese, Portuguese and Eurasians. One has an enrolment of 1,500; and not only may you find Queen's College "old boys" in merchants' offices all down the coast of China, but also occasionally, when some governor of a Chines⚫ province is in difficulties because he does not know whether
up and
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
371
Empire, by Edward A. Irving, Inspector of the city by a roundabout way. While we Schools, Hongkong.
AN INJUSTICE TO CHINA.
The Japan Chronicle takes a characteristic view of the demands made upon China by the American Minister in regard to the recent missionary murders at Linchow. Not only is an indemnity demanded, but also the dismissal of the Viceroy of Kwangtung and of the
Governor of the prefecture where the tragedy occurred. It is notorious that the Chinese Government does not wish missionaries to reside in the interior. not because it has any from dread of the complications likely to arise particular objection to Christian teaching but
missionaries insist on going into the interior by the presence of the missionaries. The
"work," and they to take up their
are
were giving this advice, it was reported to us that the mob was climbing the hill. We tried in vain to stop them; our soldiers were not numerous enough to prevent their advance In an
entire instant, the
bill surrounded. The church and the mission house set on fire, in spite of all our efforts to were prevent this, while the mob performed a flank ing movement towards the western side of the hill to set fire to the buildings from the rear. When we entered into the burning church, the Americans were no more there. Our soldiers report to us that they Ead left the building through a back door and that Chinese Chris tians had conveyed them towards the village of Ho-Tsoun about two li distant. We went at once to the village but the inhabitants informed - us that they had not seen them. We returned toward the hill and sent our men to search for them. We were suddenly informed that they
Annam is an island, he will send for and consult supported as a matter of right by their respective had taken refuge in a house at Long-Täm÷se,
his young so etary who was educated in our biggest school. These schools for the English
children and the educated Chinese and others can speak for themselves, and it would be a very good thing if they would give accounts of themselves in the League of the Empire Magazine. But I am now going to try and describe one of the 50 small schools where only Chinese is taught. I believe that any boy who reads this will feel sure at least that Chinese schools are not so very different from English schools. He might go on to think, if this is so, Chinese cannot be so very different from English after all. In a long, narrow room, lighted from the roof and by two windows at ons end, is housed a school of 30 or 40 little Chiness boys between six and thirteen years of age. There is one teacher, a thin refined- looking Chinaman, dressed in a short white jacket. It is summer, and very hot here under the tiles; so he has hung up his long coal of white crape behind his desk. He is calling the roll Cheung Lok! Cheung Lok springs to his feet, cries 'Hi!' bolds up his right haud and remains standing till the next name is called. He is dressed in a loose blue jacket, unbuttoned, which shows his small yellow person, item a pair of short blue knickerbockers, and that is all. His six inches of queue are plaited with a new string, which bobs about comically round his shaven head. Let us look at their lessons, Standard IV. are told off to write to the'r parents in China on the subject of the plague. A mighty soratching and rustling prevails, as they pour water into their palettes, and rub their ink sticks and smooth out their scraps of whitey-brown paper. Soon their brushes are at work, To Father, Great Man. Little Son reverentially petitions. With these Presents Greeting. Little Son at Hongkong is at peaca and tranquil. Big Father, Great Man, be not anxious. This year there ain't no Plague. (You will get your ear twisted for that lapse into the vu gar sp ech O Little Son). Standard III. are doing geography. The lesson is on our island, with the map before us. The dunce has just stated that the blue part (sea) is heaven. There is a general tittar. Grubby paws are waved imploringly by well-informed persons, anxious to correct. Besides the Union Jack over the dor, there is a coloured sheet of flags upon the wall, and the questioning pursues them Yes, that is the French flag. Yes, Freuch ships come into our harbour.
Right, big white ships with back funnels,
Now, show me on the big map their water- road.' And in this way we proceed from the known to the unimagined, Standard III. go back to their seats and the four rules, while Standard II. bring out their readers. A year or two back-poor children!-they would have had to recite the trimetric classic, without understanding a single syllaule. But that is not surprisi‹ g. It begins in this way-
Man is originally By nature virtuous. Born one family,
Conduct estranges us.
Now they have readers with pretty coloured pictures of animals and flowers, done by native artists. Standard I. are laboriously grinding out a plan of the schoolrom, their noses to their sla'es. They all work hard with an endurance that English children might wonder at. Their memories are phenir menal, and they hardly ever play in school. League of the
Governments. Then comes a riot, in the course murder the missionaries or do them serious of which the ignorant populace attack and harm, and the unfortunate Chinese Government,
which does not wish the missionaries to be
exposed to such risks, is promptly held respon- sible and called upon to pay an indemnity. Is this just? If the missionaries hold that it is their duty to preach their religion, surely they should do so at their own risk, and not with the countries behind them. bayonets and gunboats of their respective It is possible to sympathise deeply with the relatives of the unfortunate men and women who are murdered, the Chinese Government should also be taken and yet to hold that the unfortunate position of
into consideration.
THE LINCHOW MASSACRE.
Our Canton correspondent sends us the following translation of the joint report sent to Viceroy Shum by Colonel Liu-Chen-Kok, Wong-Chao-Lin, and the prefect, Tsim-Lin Shou
ab at eight li from the town, and that they were surrounded by a crowd of over a hundred them all. When we arrived Mr. Peale and his infuriated men who were about tò massaére
wife. Mrs. Machle and her daughter and Miss Chestnut had already been killed and thrown into the river. We could only gather their dead bodies. We have only been able to protect from the mob Dr. Machle and Miss Patterson who were still in the care. At night the mob dispersed and, acting under our advice, Dr. Machle and the lady-missionary dressed them- selves as Chinese soldiers, and we were lucký mob threatened to invest the town, to seize them enough to save them by this stratagem. The
and put them to death. The daring of these scoundrels knows no bounds.
Such horrors have come to pass through our fault, as we have been unable to prevent them. We cannot he excused. [This is a customary formul.] However, had the Americans listened to our advice and taken refuge in the military boat or had made use of our ohairs and horses as suggested, they would have escaped their terrible fate.
The Doctor himself admits this and regrets it. After some time, when things will be calmer we shall be able to arrest the ringleaders of this riot.
Such is the joint report which we beg to submit concerning the destruction by fire of the Hospital and Mission House, the massacre of five Americans and the rescue of the Dootor and a lady missio ary.
AMERICAN VERDICT ON MISSIONARIES.
"To the west of Linchow and on the other side of the river there is a plao- called Tsoi- Yun-Pa, where American Missionaries have srected two hospitals, close by the village of Ho-Tsoun-Pui. They have built on the summit of a small hill to the West, a European dwelling house, and a church a littl further at a distance of three or fou hundred yards. The Americans and the village people were on very bad terms together. The 1st day of the 10th Moon (28th October) was a Buddhist festival day. Three hundred guests were drinking wine to close the happy feast-day. Dr. Machle objected to them firing crackers and took away three bombs. The villagers get very angry; the more turbulent
"Let loosethe dogs of war in China" is the amongst them called for help; and soon a crowd of over 2,000 men gathered together and started beading and the spirit of an article in a Manila to stone the hospital. They also tried to seizweekly journal, which deals with the murder of the Americans.. We humble officials being missionaries at Linchow, and reminds its readers of the numerous other provoca1ions that America informed of the affair ran at once to the scene
has had at Chinese hands lately. It does not,. and tried to appease the anger of the crowd. The number of the assailuts was steadily in however, approve of the missionaries, of whom it creasing, however. They started by throwing entertains the following uncharitable opinions stones only, but when the mob discovered the bodies of two young children preserved in some kind of liquid, their anger was increased and everybody wanted to seize the Americans and put them to death. We endeavoured; to ex- plain that those bodies bad been preserved for examination purposes only and that they had not slaughtered any children just for that purpose. Our voice, however, could not be heard as the noise of the yelling crowd drowned our words. The mob was then setting fire to the hospital. At that moment the Doctor's wife and the two lady-missionaries, Miss Chestnut and Miss Patterson, were in hiding in their house at the summit of the hill.
We sent soldiers to extinguish the fire at the hospital but as a strong wind was blowing at the time and the building was constructed with inflammable materials we could not stop the conflagration. As to ourselves, hearing that the mob was running towards the house to seize the Europeans, we ran to their help towards the summit of the hill. I (Colonel) had a boat moored alongside the bank of the river; I We advised (Prefect) had chairs and horses. the Europeans to e cap towards the boat by the South-eastern side of the bill, or to use the chairs and horses and escape by getting into
The Christian missionaries in China are cursed by every American and foreignerin Chináe They are mostly a selfish swelled-headed cliqug of religious grafters. They have no standînd am ng the Chinese; they are secretly haten and openly barely tolerated by the America- and foreign element. Their actions have be gotten contempt."
It concludes "The Chinese are born traders. They love the dollar. If the missionaries had let them alone, they would have got along al- right with the American an¦ foreign merchants. Now, the harm has been done; American blood has been spilled, and the dead and outraged must be avenged. Delay in securing satisfae- tiou will only make the confusion worse con. founded, and that is why we say: "Let loose the dogs of wur
"
We have sometimes to find fault with the
quaiat logic of theologians; and it is only fair to pillory the intellectual follies of the undevout, Mr. E. H. Parker does not see why tons of radium or some more formidable material should not keep in eternal movement any number of solar systems. It will be seen that this is an effort to solve the problem: Which came first, the hen or the egg.
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