B.
6.
75
Chinese Studies,
16.
Ignorance of the Chinese language by Chinese boys (Para. 5) in Queen's College, which I frankly admit, is due to the abolition by the Governing Body in 1895 (against my repeated protests) of the Native Chinese School in this College after 33 years' experience of the necessity of its maintenance. It must be remembered that the Marquis of Ripon in C.O.D.14 of 1893 (Para. 5) considered the proposed change in the system of Chinese teaching at Queen's College inadvisable; and quite recently His Excellency Sir Henry Blake has expressed himself in favour of a revision to the former practice.
17. I do not fear contradiction of the statement that no really good Chinese composition can be written by a native whose mind is not saturated with the Native Classics. Missionaries train native preachers in Chinese taught after European ideas, but I should be surprised to learn that even one of these has ever graduated in the lowest degree of Sau Tsoi.
18. I find some difficulty in reconciling the opinion of the Committee (Para. 19) that "too much has been made of the time which must be spent on the study of the Chinese written language," with their statement (Para. 37B) that Messrs. Ng and Tsang, who have constantly for fifteen years been painstakingly engaged in teaching Translation from and into Chinese, are incompetent.
19. The restoration of Chinese School for the 720 boys in the lower and preparatory Schools is, in my opinion, the