Sovery Christianity was deeply interested in these further instances of the conmmation it scripture, and in more relies of the peculiar people who are everywhere witnesses of the "goodness and severity of God." The printed Plantinian Bible of these Jews com. pared with the titles and endings of the five books of Moses corresponded exactly, except that the writing had no vowel points. The synagogue, now in ruins, was a building of about sixty by forty feet, covered by a fourfold and handsome roof, having a portico with a double row of four columns, and a balustrade before it. The whole place of worship occupied a space of between three and four hundred feet in length, by about a hundred and fifty feet in breadth, comprised in four successive courts,
Among the religious forms and customs of these people in those days may be enumerated the putting off of the shoes on entering the house of prayer, and the waring of blue head dress while there. In reading the law the minister covered his face with a transparent veil
of gauze, in imitation of Moses who brought the law to the people with his face covered, and wore a red silk scarf depending from the right shoulder and tied under the left arm. By his side stood s monitor to correct his reading, if necessary, who likewise was attended by a monitor. The prayers were chaated, but with- out musical instruments. The congregation wore no talith, or garment of fringes, during the service. They observed circumcision, pass- over, tabernacles, the rejoicing of the law, and perhaps, the Day of Atonement, for on one day of the year they fasted and wept together in the synagogue. They kept the sabbath as strictly ss the Jews in Europe, made no proselytes, and
never married with the Gentiles. They had no formulary of belief, but held to the unity of God, and to the doctrines of heaven, hell, a sort of purgatory, the resurrection of the dead, the day of judgment, and the hierarchies of angels. Of Christ they had never heard. They expected the Messiah, and frequently repeated the words of dying Jacob "I have waited for Thy salvation, O Lord."
Their alienation from idolatry is particularly striking after so long an exposure to the super. stitions of the country which were guided by imperial influence. They refused to take an oath in an idol temple, and the conspicuous inscrip. tions upon the walls and arabes of their temples proclaimed their steadfastness in this matter, even upon that delicate point of the Emperor's name which in the synagogue they had surmounted by the most significant of possible warnings against confounding any reverence whatever with that due to the blessed and only potentate." They prayed westward, towards Jerusalem.
Permission to erect this synagogue in China was obtained from the Emperor in A.D. 1,163. From several inscriptions in the synagogne it was learned that the Jews came to China in either between B.C. 205 and A.D. 220 (in the Han dynasty), or between B.C.1,122 and A.D. 249 (in the Chow dynasty). Their own account of arrival thither is merely that their forefathers came from the west, probably by way of Khorassan and Samerkand, the main route of incient commerce in that direction. Their use of Persian words has been connected with this circumstance.
The ancient Jews in China have practically all now died out, one community after another being engulfed by Mahomedan or other influences. A mission of enquiry was despat- ched, to their last centre mentioned, by the Bishop of Victoria (Hongkong) under the auspices of a Jewish society in London. The two Chinese who were sent hd a long and tedious journey of 25 days, 600 miles by land and water, before reaching this city. Here they found a few Jewish families surrounded by Mahomedans (two-thirds of the population of this city were of the latter persuasion), and by heathens. The Jews were very poor, but still kept themselves separate from their surround- ings. None could read the oracles of Jehovah in the Hebrew, and the last of their Rabbis had then been dead for fifty years. The hope of the expected Messiah was forgotten. Their synagogue was in ruins, Originally seventy families they had. A remnant of seven households only was left, their little community numbering but 200 souls. Some were shop keepers, some farmers and a few lived in their temple precincts with scarce sufficient in the
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
way of clothing or roof to shelter them. They petitioned the Chinese Emperor to have pity on them and repair their temple, but with no response, and part of the fallen material had been sold to the heathen.
Well might they have cried "O God, the heathen are come into thy inheritance, thy holy temple have they defile. We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us.'
CHINESE BUSINESS AFFECTED.
HOW INTERNAL REVENUE ACT IMPOSES HARD- SHIPS ON CHINESE IN BUSINESS IN PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. "The business of the Chinese merchants in
the Philippines is being crippled for want of clerical help. The internal revenue law necessitates an elaborate system of book keeping, and the immigration laws are such that we are prohibited from importing the only class of people who can help us out, namely, fellow countrymen who understand our own languag."
The above remark was made by the Chinese Consul for Manila, to a Cablenews man.
"The Chinese do not object to the amount of
money which they have to contribute toward the expenses of the government, "the consul continued, "but they do object to the truble- some way in which it is collected. If we could only get through with the business without the vast amount of routine necessary at present we might manage to get on in the old way without the bookkeepers which we are prohibited from bringing in. As it is, we are asked to do a thing and then deprived of the only means at our disposal of carrying out the command."
When asked why Filipino bookkeepers were not employed, the consul replied with a smile that in the first place the Filipino bookkeeper' does not understand Chinese, and in the second place,well, the consul was too polite to say out-and-out that the two races were antagonistic to ever get on as master and ser- vant, but he evidently meant this to be inferred.
too
As for the new internal revenue law in
general, he is not in favour of it. He pronounces it an antiquated system discarded by the United States years ago. Thus far, while Collector Hord has done all in his power to prevent im- position and fraud being practised upon the Chinese by unscrupulous people palming them. selves off as internal revenue agents, neverthe less there is considerable of that sort of thing going on.
While the law requires that an agent must produce on demand his license printed in Chin- ese, Spanish and Tagalog, yet the Chinaman does not feel like holding up every respectable looking man who enters his place of business and claim to be an agent of the internal reve- nne department, and as a result frauds are committed.
The method, the consul explained, is simple enough. The supposed agent enters the shop, begins to find fault with this thing and that, and finally hints that he will overlook the many irregularities for a consideration. The money is paid and nothing more is said about the matter.
In one case the consul feels morally certain that a certain disreputable Chinaman has been working in collusion with a real secret service man to fleece the more ignorant class of Chinese. On the whole the American occupation has greatly changed the business of the Chinese in the Philippines, he continued. The legislation against Chinese immigration was begun about a year after the Americans arrived, but for some time exclusion applied only to labourers. Since then, however, the law has been made more and more strict, until now it is impossible for the Chinese colony even to bring in a Chinese physician.
Two branches of trade have developed of late among the Chinese of the islands, secording to the consul's story. One is American four, and the other Filipino sugar. Of course the first industry is due wholly to American occupa tion, and has led to a great influx (80 long as they could get in at all) of Cantonese from Hongkong who had learned the four business there. For this reason the num- ber of Cantonese in the archipelago has increased in recent years about 70 per cent, they now
{April 23, 1903.
forming nearly one-third of the entire Chinesa population.
In regard to the sugar trade between the Philippines and China, the oonenl thinks there is a bright outlook for the Chinese merchanta here in the islands who have ospital enough with which to carry on the business. With the loss of Formosa to the Japanese, the principal source of sugar for the Chinese market was ont off, and the cultivation of the product on the mainland has by no means kept pace with the rapidly growing demand. The Chinese mer- cbants in the Philippines, understanding the commercial souditions here and the peculiarities of the situation in the home country, are in a fair way, the consul thinks, to build up a flourishing business.
But through all that he said ran the larger wish that his countrymen might be allowed to enter the islands unrestricted, and compete with the world in the development of the country.
When asked for his opiniou about the effect upon the Chinese empire of the present war, he was slow to express an opinion, but finally so- knowledged that there was no doubt in his mind but what the whole vast Chinese Empire would before very long be inspired by the Japanese and become an armed camp like the nations of Europe.
"But you cannot understand how our people love peace," he added with an indulgent "amile which told plainly of su at itude toward war existing in the ancient empire which the western barbarian cannot comprehend.-Manila Cablenews.
FORESTRY AT HONGKONG. ·
Mr. Dunn in his annual report says :---
REVENUE FOR 1904. Sale of Forestry Products Sale of Plants Loan of Plants Forestry Licences in New Territory... 5,764.00
$18,208.34
736.94 49216
Total... ...$25,201.44 Felling and replanting on the basis of a 25- year rotation were commenced this year.
The question of what is the best rotation for Pinus massoniana in Hongkong is, however, still open to doubt; experts differ on the point and H. E. the Governor has decided that no this year's operations have been calculated and more felling shall take place until the results of
the whole question put before an independent authority.
The heavy work of replanting was well in hand before the end of this year. A commence- ment was also made in afforesting the bare sandy hills behind Kowloon with 50,000 pine seedlings.
Forestry Licences in the New Territory.- When the New Territory was taken over by
From
the Brit ah in 1899 there were about as many large pine trees growing in the district as there are small ones now. The Chinese, being afraid that their new naaters would confiscate the trees, began to cut them down wholesale. the accounts which have been collected there must have been something like eight million disposed of in this way, a course which has been ere now, no doubt, bitterly repented; for a a matter of fact the only restriction enforced by the Police was with regard to the cutting down of large wild trees and Fung Shui trees ronnd the villages. The confidenos of the tree far- mers towards English rule having become gradually re-established, and safety from encroachments by neighbouring owners being further secured by the presence of the Police, re-afforestation soon began. The scheme of defining and registering the plant tions was therefore received in general with great read- iness by the farmers, who came forward when called on and paid their licenc fees. The scheme was designed to encourage the farmers to re-afforest by giving them secure tenure of the trees, to secure re-sowing of felled areas and to provide a proper demarcation of the ground in case of disputes. The superintendent, accompani- ed by the newly appointed Licensing Clerk, visited about 80 per cent. of the plantations between August and December, issuing about 300 licences and collecting $5,700.0 in licence fees. The foor were at the rate of 10 cents per sore so that the total acreage licensed is about 57,000 sores, In several cases disputes arose in consequence of the wrong persons having come forward and
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