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“ROMAJI.”
(Daily Press, 7th February.)
The necessity of Romanising the Chinese language still occupies the attention of interested people. The latest attempt seems to be that of the Education Association of China, an association connected with the
means difficult
to
to
-
SUPERSTITION IN EAST AND
WEST.
"THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
doing it with the object in chief of sup- planting Far Eastern superstitions with the superstitions of the Near East. Thus, we are told that "country women have been taught the Romanised in three months and have learned to read the whole Bible and stood au examination in certain important truths. Thus, in three months one hope- lessly illiterate goes home with complete access to the best thought of the world." religious mission. This transliteration of For being able to read, and being able to Chinese writing into Roman spelling is no understand or discount what one reads, are attempt at a universal speech, like the two different things; and no amount of defunct Volapuk or the modern Esperanto. Romaji lore will give to the native the It changes no language or dialect, but
capacity to grasp the real meanings which it is a practical and practicable inea- have been the subject matter of learned sure for extending the influence of the squabbles in Europe for the last thousand language already in use. None of the
years. Whether the ability to read their traditions of Chinese literature are threat-native newspapers will help the Chinese any ened, unless it be the facility for the graphic further on the road to happiness is also puns which the similarity of many ideographs another question, the answer to which can. has afforded. The best colloquial diction not reasonably be expected of us. of Mandarin or any dialect can be just as well, if not better, preserved by writing it in the Roman alphabet as in the bewildering scrawls of the scholar. In Japan, the same system, under the name of Romaji, is under- stood quite well by the natives, and it has qeen a wonderful help to foreigners desirous of learning Japanese. Without it, a very
(Daily Press, 8th February.) expressive language, and one that in It has been always the habit of Europeans this form is by no
to smile at the curious superstitious which acquire, would have been closed
are found among the Chinese, but latterly all Europeans except the very few with there is evidence that some of these fanciful time to memorise thousands of ideographs, ideas are gaining a hold in a somewhat or to take lengthy lessons orally. The same curious way, among the nations of the West, difficulty arose in Japan that promises to whose boasted civilisation is supposed to hinder the adoption of a Chinese Romaji, raise them far above any such vain imagin- -n the foolish diversity of rules for proi ations. It would perhaps astonish many nouncing the foreign spelling. In the good people who flutter themselves that absence of a general willingness to acquire something quite new has been discovered an absolutely phonetic writing like PITMAN'S by the devotees of the occult sciences, whose shorthand, Roman characters are the best speculations now form a species of culte aud most widely used mediuin; but unfor-known as "modern spiritism," to hear that, tunately one European nation does not pronounce a group of Roman letters in the same way that another does. Perhaps the German metho.l of spelling is the most uniformly phonetic of any, and for Chinese names, this is the system now being adopted by the Times and various book- producing sinologues. “Kung hai fat choi” was a local New Year greeting recently ppearing in the Daily Press, and it affords an instance of the bewilderment likely to occur unless one particular usage be agreed upon. The second word is pronounced, according to the English spelling, as bay," and not "high," as Romaji students would imagine. But even when the refor- mers agree to use one spelling, an apparent ginorance of phonetics may mar their efforts. Marks for accent or aspiration are always cumbersome, and there is no real need for them. Ph," if the student be made to realise that the Romaji is intended to be phonetic, and that there is already a letter "F" is much to be preferred to the mis- sionary device of "P" We are also unable to find any excuse for a conjunction like Dj." Not even a Chinese tongue can achieve any real difference in the pronun- ciation of "djang" and "jang." Thus the 1.ewest system of Romanising Mandarin, simple as it seems, could probably be much more simplified. The advantage to the foreigner and the Chinese pupil alike, of having to learn, instead of five or six thou- sand characters, only twenty-seven "initials" and thirty-eight "finals," is obvious. With those syllables, in easy combinations, it should not be difficult to run the whole gamut of the four hundred syllables that the new system erabraces. It will be con- sidered a pity in some quarters that an Association doing such a great work for the education of the Chinese masses should be
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in their true essence, the theories which they propound are very much the saine as those embodied in well-known and time honoured superstitions among the Chinese. The notions of the Chinese as to Fung Shui and as to the presence of various spiritual influences, mostly of a malign character, around and about them, will be found to bear a very strong family likeness to much that forms the subject of the solemu investi- gations of the Psychological Society, to be brought forward as something quite new, The Chinaman believes in influences, or "intelligences," or whatever people may be pleased to call them, and he sets about exorcising them with gongs, while the spiritists" call them up by turning tables or writing with " planchettes." Essentially the two beliefs are one and the same, and the extravagances with regard to the one do not call for a smile very much more than those with respect to the other. The
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[February 11, 1905.
ered that there are quite as many mysteries in the natural as in what has been deemed (with doubtful logic) the supernatural world, and speculative genius is divided on the question into which class it should place any phenomenon of an unexpected and new character. If we had never heard of MARCONI but had suddenly come upon the results of his discovery, wireless telegraphy would by a large number of people be dumped down among the supernatural. As it is, people are beginning to speculato whether a good deal which they have con- sidered supernatural is not something like wireless telegraphy. On the other hand, with the advance of science, there has been little diminution in superstition and it is curious to find theories quite as fantastic as anything with respect to Fung Shui gravely propounded by men of scientific eminence in the West. We ought not therefore to be surprised that the Chinese have their own beliefs as to things which will probably remain mysteries to the end of our race, from whatever point of view they may be approached. What is of importance to remember is that the Chinaman really believes in the influences of Fung Shui and of departed spirits much more seriously than people generally give him the credit of doing. In an ordinary way, he is so prosaic that we jump to the conclusion that he has no imagination, and conclude that he does not attach much importance to mere popular beliefs. As far as we hear of them, these superstitious are explained to us only in a very crude form; and we are apt to jump to the conclusion that they cannot be seriously entertained by reasonable men. The manner, however, in which popular sentiment has been often roused in China through an appeal to superstitious beliefs negatives this idea; and no one who is aware of these facts can consider that such ideas are a mere form of philosophic speculation. Such beliefs are a force which has to be reckoned with; and we can scarcely be surprised that the official classes are able to call it into active operation when it suits them, when we bear in mind the dogree to which Europeans of marked intelligence have been influenced by very similar beliefs, especially of late years. men like Sir WILLIAM When we find
"
CROOKES believing the teachings of modern "spiritists," we may at least look with some charity upon the Chinaman who believes in the ancient spiritism of his country. People will believe almost anything when once their imagination has been sufficiently ex- cited. A work recently published on what treats the is called "Modern Spiritism anbject in the most serious manner, and t least is interesting as showing the number of persons-
8-some of scientific eminence-who have been induced to believe these fanciful theories, upon what appears to many people as very little evidence beyond an ingenious. appeal to the imaginative faculties. it is borne in mind that the speculations which are made in this direction have for ages been familiar not only to the Chinese but to other Oriental nations, it may perhaps be admitted that there is less in them than has been conjectured. We do not wish to enter into a polemical discussion on this very expansive subject; but it may be useful to point out as an undeniable fact that there is nothing really new in any of the speculations which have been based upon supposed supernatural manifestations. If we abstract from them all that is derived
When
real sanction for such belief iu both case‹ is either sentiment or inner conscious less, and the belief will be more or less accept ed in one or the other form accord ing to temperament or tradition. Of late years we have not heard so much as the difficulties which the formerly of Chinese faith in Fung Shui presents to material progress. What the exact belief is which is entertained by the masses in China as to the danger of disturbing these local influences or spirits (for it is not quite clear which they are considered) has never been perfectly understood by Europeans. I So far as can be ascertained, the idea seems to be of some mysterious action in that from Brahminism and Buddhism, and the lebatable region which lies between spirit still larger portion that is nothing more and matter and to which-as an easy mode than a reproduction of old superstitions of explanation-men are fain to remit all familiar in the East, it will be found that that cannot be readily explained by ordinary very little remains that can be looked upon experience. As science advancés, it is discov. I in any way as a new discovery.
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