pretending to give a preference to the clumsy matchlocks over the
firelocks now in use among European troops, he replied, it had been
found, after a severe engagement in Thibet, that the matchlocks had done
much more execution than the firelocks. It is difficult to combat
prejudices; but it was not very difficult to convince _Van_ that the
_men_ might probably have been quite as much in fault as the _musquets_,
and that the superior steadiness of the fire from the matchlocks might
possibly be owing to their being fixed, by an iron fork, into the
ground. The missionaries have assigned a very absurd reason for
firelocks not being used in China; they say the dampness of the air is
apt to make the flint miss fire. With equal propriety might these
gentlemen have asserted that flints would not emit fire in Italy. Their
want of good iron and steel to manufacture locks, or the bad quality of
their gunpowder, might perhaps be offered as better reasons; and as the
best of all their want of courage and coolness to make use of them with
that steadiness which is required to produce the effects of which they
are capable. Their favourite instrument is the bow, which, like all
other missile weapons, requires less courage to manage, than those
which bring man to oppose himself in close contest with man.
Although the Tartars have found it expedient to continue the Chinese
army on the old footing, it may naturally be supposed they would
endeavour to secure themselves by all possible means in the possession
of this vast empire, and that they would use every exertion to recruit
the army with their own countrymen, in preference to the Chinese. Every
Tartar male child is accordingly enrolled. This precaution was
necessary, as their whole army, at the time of the conquest, is said not
to have exceeded eighty thousand men. At this time, in fact, a weak
administration had suffered the empire to be torn asunder by
convulsions. Every department, both civil and military, was under the
control of eunuchs. Six thousand of these creatures are said to have
been turned adrift by the Tartars on taking possession of the palace in
Pekin.
The conduct of the Mantchoo Tartars, whose race is now on the throne,
was a master-piece of policy little to be expected in a tribe of people
that had been considered but as half civilized. They entered the Chinese
dominions as auxiliaries against two rebel chiefs, but soon perceived
they might become the principals. Having placed their leader on the
vacant throne, instead of setting up for conquerors, they melted at once
into the mass of the conquered. They adopted the dress, the manners, and
the opinions of the people. In all the civil departments of the state
they appointed the ablest Chinese, and all vacancies were filled with
Chinese in preference to Tartars. They learned the Chinese language;
married into Chinese families; encouraged Chinese superstitions; and, in
short, omitted no step that could tend to incorporate them as one
nation. Their great object was to strengthen the army with their own
countrymen, whilst the Chinese were so satisfied with the change, that
they almost doubted whether a change had really taken place.
The uninterrupted succession of four Emperors, all of whom were endowed
with excellent understandings, uncommon vigour of mind, and decision of
character, has hitherto obviated the danger of such an enormous
disproportion between the governors and the governed. The wisdom,
prudence, and energy of these Emperors have not only maintained the
family on the throne, the fifth of which now fills it, but have enlarged
the dominions to an extent of which history furnishes no parallel. The
present Emperor, _Kia-king_, is said to possess the learning and
prudence of his father, and the firmness of _Kaung-shee_; but it is
probable he will have a more difficult task in governing the empire than
either of his predecessors. In proportion as the Tartar power has
increased, they have become less felicitous to conciliate the Chinese.
All the heads of departments are now Tartars. The ministers are all
Tartars; and most of the offices of high trust and power are filled by
Tartars. And although the ancient language of the country is still
preserved as the court language, yet it is more than probable that
Tartar pride, encreasing with its growing power, will ere long be
induced to adopt its own.
The Emperor _Kaung-shee_ indeed took uncommon pains to improve the
Mantchoo language, and to form it into a systematic _Thesaurus_ or
dictionary; and _Tchien-Lung_ directed that the children of all such
parents as were one a Tartar, the other a Chinese, should be taught the
Mantchoo language; and that they might pass their examinations for
office in that language. I could observe, that the young men of the
royal family at _Yuen-min-yuen_ spoke with great contempt of the
Chinese. One of them, perceiving that I was desirous of acquiring some
knowledge of the Chinese written character, took great pains to convince
me that the Tartar language was much superior to it; and he not only
offered to furnish me with the alphabet and some books, but with his
instructions also, if I would give up the Chinese, which, he observed,
was not to be acquired in the course of a man's whole life. I could not
forbear remarking, how very much these young princes enjoyed a jest
levelled against the Chinese. An ill-natured remark, for instance, on
the cramped feet and the hobbling gait of a Chinese woman met with their
hearty approbation; but they were equally displeased on hearing the
clumsy shoes worn by the Tartar ladies compared to the broad
flat-bottomed junks of the Chinese.
Although the ancient institutes and laws, the established forms of
office, the pageantry of administration, were all retained, and the
dress, the manners, and external deportment of the vanquished were
assumed by the victors, yet the native character remained distinct; and
now, in the higher departments of office especially, it bursts through
all disguise. The conscious superiority of the one checks and overawes
the other. "Most of our books," observes Lord Macartney, "confound the
two people together, and talk of them as if they made only one nation
under the general name of China; but whatever might be concluded from
any outward appearances, the real distinction is never forgotten by the
sovereign who, though he pretends to be perfectly impartial, conducts
himself at bottom by a systematic nationality, and never for a moment
loses sight of the cradle of his power. The science of government in the
_Eastern_ world, is understood by those who govern very differently from
what it is in the _Western_. When the succession of a contested kingdom
in Europe is once ascertained, whether by violence or compromise, the
nation returns to its pristine regularity and composure: it matters
little whether a Bourbon or an Austrian fills the throne of Naples or of
Spain, because the sovereign, whoever he be, then becomes to all intents
and purposes, a Spaniard or Neapolitan, and his descendants continue so
with accelerated velocity. George the First and George the Second ceased
to be foreigners from the moment our sceptre was fixed in their hands;
and His present Majesty is as much an Englishman as King Alfred or King
Edgar, and governs his people not by Teutonic, but by English laws.
"The policy of Asia is totally opposite. There the prince regards the
place of his nativity as an accident of mere indifference. If the parent
root be good, he thinks it will flourish in every soil, and perhaps
acquire fresh vigour from transplantation. It is not locality, but his
own cast and family; it is not the country where he drew his breath,
but the stock from which he sprung; it is not the scenery of the
theatre, but the spirit of the drama, that engages his attention and
occupies his thoughts. A series of two hundred years, in the succession
of eight or ten monarchs, did not change the Mogul into a Hindoo, nor
has a century and a half made _Tchien-Lung_ a Chinese. He remains, at
this hour, in all his maxims of policy, as true a Tartar as any of his
ancestors."
Whether this most ancient empire among men will long continue in its
stability and integrity, can only be matter of conjecture, but certain
it is, the Chinese are greatly dissatisfied, and not without reason, at
the imperious tone now openly assumed by the Tartars; and though they
are obliged to cringe and submit, in order to rise to any distinction in
the state, yet they unanimously load them with
"Curses, not loud, but deep, mouth-honour, breath[33]."
[33] The last accounts, indeed, that have been received from China, are
rather of an alarming nature. A very serious rebellion had broken out in
the western provinces, which had extended to that of Canton, the object
of which was the overthrow of the Tartar government. It was known for
some years past, as I before observed, that certain secret societies
were forming in the different provinces, who corresponded together by
unknown signs, agreed upon by convention, but they were not considered
to be of that extent as to cause any uneasiness to the government. It
appears, however, that not fewer than forty thousand men had assembled
in arms in the province of Canton, at the head of whom was a man of the
family of the last Chinese Emperor, who had assumed the Imperial Yellow.
These rebels, it seems, are considerably encouraged in their cause by a
prophesy, which is current among the people, that the present Tartar
dynasty shall be overturned in the year 1804. The existence of such a
prophecy may be more dangerous to the Tartar government than the arms of
the rebels, by assisting to bring about its own accomplishment.
Whenever the dismemberment or dislocation of this great machine shall
take place, either by a rebellion or revolution, it must be at the
expence of many millions of lives. For, as is well observed by Lord
Macartney, "A sudden transition from slavery to freedom, from dependence
to authority, can seldom be borne with moderation or discretion. Every
change in the state of man ought to be gentle and gradual, otherwise it
is commonly dangerous to himself, and intolerable to others. A due
preparation may be as necessary for liberty, as for inoculation of the
small-pox, which, like liberty, is future health but, without due
preparation, is almost certain destruction. Thus then the Chinese, if
not led to emancipation by degrees, but let loose on a burst of
enthusiasm, would probably fall into all the excesses of folly, suffer
all the paroxysms of madness, and be found as unfit for the enjoyment of
rational freedom, as the French and the negroes."
CHAP. VIII.
Conjectures on the Origin of the Chinese.--Their Religious
Sects,--Tenets,--and Ceremonies.
_Embassy departs from Pekin, and is lodged in a Temple.--Colony from
Egypt not necessary to be supposed, in order to account for Egyptian
Mythology in China.--Opinions concerning Chinese Origin.--Observations
on the Heights of Tartary.--Probably the Resting-place of the Ark of
Noah.--Ancients ignorant of the Chinese.--Seres.--First known
Intercourse of Foreigners with China.--Jews.--Budhists.--Nestorians.
--Mahomedans.--Roman Catholics.--Quarrels of the Jesuits and Dominicans.
--Religion of Confucius.--Attached to the Prediction of future Events.
--Notions entertained by him of a future State.--Of the Deity.--Doctrine
not unlike that of the Stoics.--Ceremonies in Honour of his Memory led to
Idolatry.--Misrepresentations of the Missionaries with regard to the
Religion of the Chinese.--The_ Tao-tze _or_ Sons of Immortals.--_Their
Beverage of Life.--The Disciples of_ Fo _or Budhists.--Comparison of
some of the Hindu, Greek, Egyptian, and Chinese Deities.--The_ Lotos
_or_ Nelumbium.--_Story of_ Osiris _and_ Isis, _and the_ Isia _compared
with the Imperial Ceremony of Ploughing.--Women visit the
Temples.--Practical Part of Chinese Religion.--Funeral Obsequies.--Feast
of Lanterns.--Obeisance to the Emperor performed in Temples leads to
Idolatry.--Primitive Religion lost or corrupted.--Summary of Chinese
Religion._
The suspicious and watchful conduct of the Chinese government towards
strangers was ill suited to the free and independent spirit of Britons.
Confined within the limits of their hotel, the populous capital of China
was to them little better than a desert. It was, therefore, less
painful to be obliged to quit a place which they could consider in no
other light than as an honourable prison, and to take leave of a people,
whose general character seemed to be strongly marked with pride,
meanness, and ignorance. After having passed some time in a nation,
where every petty officer is a tyrant, and every man a slave, how doubly
precious do the blessings of that true liberty appear, which our happy
constitution affords to every one the means of enjoying at home; where
property is secured from violence, and where the life of the meanest
subject is equally protected with that of the prince. Let those
visionary men, who amuse themselves in building Utopian governments, and
those who, from real or fancied injury or neglect, feel the chagrin of
disappointment, visit other countries, and experience how justice is
administered in other nations; they will then be taught to confess that
real liberty exists only in Great Britain--in that happy island where,
to use the expression of an eminent writer on the laws of nations[34],
"an enlightened piety in the people is the firmest support of lawful
authority; and in the sovereign's breast, it is the pledge of the
people's safety, and excites their confidence."
[34] Vattel.
Impressed with such sentiments, on the evening of the 7th of October I
rode through the streets of Pekin, for the last time, in company with
Mr. Maxwell. We were quite alone, not a single Chinese servant, nor
soldier, nor officer to conduct us; yet we had no difficulty in finding
our way. We passed through the broad streets of this capital from one
extremity to the other without the least molestation, or, indeed, the
least notice. We could not forbear remarking the extraordinary contrast,
that the two greatest cities in the world exhibited at this hour of the
day. In the public streets of Pekin, after five or six o'clock in the
evening, scarcely a human creature is seen to move, but they abound with
dogs and swine. All its inhabitants, having finished the business of the
day, are now retired to their respective homes to eat their rice and,
agreeably with the custom of their great Emperor, which to them is a
law, to lie down with the setting sun; at which time in London, the
crowd is so great, from Hyde Park corner to Mile End, as to interrupt
each other. In Pekin, from the moment the day begins to dawn, the buzz
and the bustle of the populace is like that of a swarm of bees; whilst,
on the contrary, the streets of London at an early hour in the morning
are nearly deserted. At eight in the evening, even in summer, the gates
of Pekin are shut, and the keys sent to the governor, after which they
cannot be opened on any consideration.
The Embassador and the rest of the suite, with the soldiers, servants
and musicians had, several hours before us, set out in a sort of
procession, in which an officer of government on horseback took the
lead, with the letter of the Emperor of China to the King of England
slung across his shoulders, in a wooden case covered with yellow silk.
At a late hour in the night, we joined the rest of the party in the
suburbs of _Tong-tchoo-foo_, where we were once more lodged among the
gods of the nation, in a temple that was consecrated to the patronizing
deity of the city. There are no inns in any part of this vast empire;
or, to speak more correctly (for there are resting-places), no inhabited
and furnished houses where, in consideration of paying a certain sum of
money, a traveller may purchase the refreshments of comfortable rest,
and of allaying the calls of hunger. The state of society admits of no
such accommodation, and much less such as, in many countries, proceeds
from a spirit of disinterested hospitality; on the contrary, in this
country, they invariably shut their doors against a stranger. What they
call inns are mean hovels, consisting of bare walls where, perhaps, a
traveller may procure his cup of tea for a piece of copper money, and
permission to pass the night; but this is the extent of the comforts
which such places hold out. The practice indeed of travelling by land is
so rare, except occasionally in those parts of the country which admit
not the convenience of inland navigations, or at such times when these
are frozen up, that the profits which might arise from the entertainment
of passengers could not support a house of decent accommodation. The
officers of state invariably make life of the conveniences which the
temples offer, as being superior to any other which the country affords;
and the priests, well knowing how vain it would be to resist, or
remonstrate, patiently submit, and resign the temporary use of their
apartments without a murmur.
In most countries of the civilized world, the buildings appropriated for
religious worship and the repositories of their gods, are generally held
sacred. In the monasteries of those parts of Europe, where inns are not
to be found, the apartments of the monks are sometimes resorted to by
travellers, but in China the very _sanctum sanctorum_ is invaded. Every
corner is indiscriminately occupied by men in power, if they should
require it. Sometimes, also, the whole building is made a common place
of resort for vagrants and idlers, where gamblers mix with gods, and
priests with pick-pockets. In justice, however, it must be observed,
that the priests of the two popular religions which predominate in the
country shew no inclination to encourage, by joining in, the vicious
practices of the rabble; but having no pay nor emolument from
government, and being rather tolerated than supported, they are obliged
to submit to and to overlook abuses of this nature, and even to allow
the profane practices of the rabble in the very hours of their devotion.
Yet there is a decency of behaviour, a sort of pride and dignity in the
deportment of a Chinese priest, that readily distinguish him from the
vulgar. The calumnies, which some of the Roman Catholic missionaries
have so industriously circulated against them, seem to have no
foundation in truth. The near resemblance of their dress and holy rites
to those of their own faith was so mortifying a circumstance, that none
of the missionaries I conversed with could speak with temper of the
priests of China. I could not even prevail on our interpreter of the
_propaganda fide_, who still manifested a predilection for the customs
of his country in every other respect, to step into the temple where the
altar was placed; nor could he be induced, by any persuasion, to give or
to ask an explanation of their mysterious doctrines.
There is no subject, perhaps, on which a traveller ought to speak with
less confidence, than on the religious opinions of the people he may
chance to visit, in countries out of Europe, especially when those
opinions are grounded on a very remote antiquity. The allegorical
allusions in which they might originally have been involved, the various
changes they may since have undergone, the ceremonies and types under
which they are still exhibited, in their modern dress, render them so
wholly unintelligible that, although they may have been founded in truth
and reason, they now appear absurd and ridiculous; equally inexplicable
by the people themselves who profess them, as by those who are utter
strangers. The various modes, indeed, under which the Creator and Ruler
of the Universe is recognised by various nations, all tending to one
point, but setting out in very different directions, can only be
understood and reconciled by a thorough knowledge of the language, the
history, and the habits of the people; of their origin and connections
with other nations; and, even after such knowledge has been obtained, it
is no easy task to separate fable from metaphor, and truth from fiction.
For these reasons, the religion of China appears to be fully as obscure
and inexplicable as that of almost any other of the oriental nations.
The language of the country, added to the jealousy of the government in
admitting foreigners, have thrown almost insuperable obstacles in the
way of clearing up this intricate subject; and those few, who only have
had opportunities of overcoming these difficulties, were unfortunately
men of that class, whose opinions were so warped by the prejudices
imbibed with the tenets of their own religion, that the accounts given
by them are not always to be depended upon. As I have already observed,
they cannot bring themselves to speak or to write of the priests of
China with any degree of temper or moderation.
It would be presumptuous in me to suppose, for a moment, that I am
qualified to remove the veil of darkness that covers the popular
religion of China. But as, in the practice of this religion, it is
impossible not to discover a common origin with the systems of other
nations in ancient times, it may not be improper to introduce a few
remarks on the subject, and to enquire if history will enable us to
point out, in what manner they might have received or communicated the
superstitions and metaphysical ideas that seem to prevail among them.
The obvious coincidence between some parts of the mythological doctrines
of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, with those of China, induced the
learned Monsieur de Guignes and many of the Jesuits to infer, that a
colony from Egypt, at some remote period, had passed into China. This
however does not appear probable. The Chinese are not a mixed but a
distinct race of men; and their countenance has nothing of the ancient
Egyptian in it. Nor indeed is it necessary to suppose any such
connection, in order to explain the vestiges of Egyptian mythology that
may appear in their temples. We are informed by history that when
Alexander marched into India, about three centuries before the birth of
Christ, many learned Greeks accompanied him on this memorable
expedition; and we are further informed that, two centuries after this
period when the persecutions and cruelties of Ptolemy Physcon expelled
great numbers of learned and pious Greeks and Egyptians from the city of
Alexandria, they travelled eastward in search of an asylum among the
Persians and the Indians; so that there is nothing extraordinary in
meeting with Greek and Egyptian superstitions among nations of the East;
even where no vestige of their language remains. For it may be observed
that, whenever colonies emigrate from their own country and settle among
strangers, they are much more apt to lose their native language, than
their religious dogmas and superstitious notions. Necessity indeed may
compel them to adopt the language of the new country into which they
have emigrated, but any compulsive measures to draw them to another
religion serve only to strengthen them in their own. The French refugees
at the Cape of Good Hope totally lost their language in less than
seventy years; and, singular as it may appear, I met with a deserter
from one of the Scotch regiments, on the borders of the Kaffer country,
who had so far forgot his language, in the course of about three years,
that he was not able to make himself intelligible by it. Many languages,
we know, have totally been lost, and others so changed as scarcely to
preserve any traces of their original form[35].