of inquiry about what we shall eat, and what we shall drink, and
wherewithal we shall be clothed. These are the very things after
which the _Gentiles_ seek; and they seek them with their whole
soul, and mind, and strength. Yet great numbers live‑‑perhaps are
compelled to live‑‑solely by begging. In Canton, beggars are very
numerous. They have, it is said, laws for begging, and a head man,
who among the foreigners is called "the king of the beggars." Men
and women of all ages, may be seen begging; great numbers of them
are _blind_. When they go through the streets, they carry in one
hand a cane to feel their way, and in the other a dish or bag to
receive money or food, or any thing people please to give them.
Sometimes they are seen in companies, of 3, 4, 6, or 10, or even
more; they hollow or sing, or rather "cry out" as they go. One
of their laws is, that when they enter a house or shop, they will
not go till something is given them. With bamboo sticks, or gongs,
they set up a most vexatious clatter, and in this way trouble and
annoy people, till they give them something; and, if it be no more
than a single _cash_, then they must "be off."
Your true friend,
E.C.B.
______
LETTER XII.
_Canton_, (_China_,) _Dec_. 9, 1831.
MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS,‑‑Having no fear of God before their eyes,
the Chinese often become very wicked and guilty of numerous crimes,
not only against _Him_, whose eternal power and godhead they deny,
but against their fellow‑men. This wickedness and these crimes,
expose them to many and very severe punishments. Lying, gambling,
quarrelling, theft, robbery, and bribery, are among their most
common vices. There are _five_ punishments; (1.) to beat with a
small bamboo; (2.) to beat with a large bamboo; (3.) banishment
to another district or province; (4.) perpetual banishment to the
borders of the empire; and (5.) death. These five, are sometimes
reduced to three, the bamboo, banishment, and death. It may be
remarked, also, that these punishments are sometimes exchanged
for others.
_Lying_, among a great majority of the population, seems to be
regarded as a very small offence,‑‑provided the lie be not detected.
There are men, I believe, who will not lie; but while this great
wickedness is disallowed of by a few, multitudes will ever and
always practise it; if they only suppose they shall be the gainers
thereby. Officers of Government will tell lies to one another.
The people will lie to the magistrates; children to their parents;
and servants to their masters. Instead of supposing every man to
be honest, until he is proved to be a rogue, they seem to regard
every one as a rogue, until he _proves himself to be honest_.
_Gambling_ is a chief "crying sin" among the Chinese. They are
notorious gamblers. Old and young, rulers and subjects, rich and
poor, will gamble; nor have they much regard to the time, or place,
when they gamble. I have often seen them gambling in their temples.
Thousands are ruined by this sin.
_Quarrels_ spring up from lying, and gambling, and other wicked
practices, just as surely as briers, thorns, and thistles spring
up in a rich but uncultivated soil. Their strange mode of marriage
too, is a fruitful source of quarrels. As to their quarrels, it
has been well said,‑‑"A Chinese would stand and reason with a man,
when an Englishman would knock him down, or an Italian stab him.
It is needless to say which is the more rational mode of proceeding."
I am not aware that the Chinese ever fight duels‑‑though in their
quarrels, persons are often killed. They are great scolds, and
use the most obscene and abusive language.
_Theft_ and _robbery_ are the most common among the poor, though
it is _not_ confined to them. Among such multitudes of beggars,
it often happens, that they cannot obtain sufficient food and
clothing to make themselves comfortable. By gambling also,
multitudes are reduced to beggary and want; hence come bands of
thieves and robbers, trained and prepared for any and every thing
that is evil.
Theft and robbery constitute one of the greatest scourges in this
land; and no part of the country, from one extremity of the empire
to the other, is free and secure from this evil. Since I commenced
this letter, one of my boys has told me of a case of this kind,
which has just occurred in the neighborhood. It is as follows;‑‑two
men, dressed like poor females, entered a rich man's house late
in the evening, and wished to be lodged there during the night.
This privilege was granted them. When all were asleep, they silently
put off their false dress, packed up a large number of rich articles
belonging to the house, and were about to escape, when they were
discovered, seized, carried away to the magistrates and sentenced
to be beheaded.‑‑Though decapitation is not the severest
punishment, yet more than two hundred instances of it have occurred
in Canton in a single year.
_Bribery_ is very common in China; perverting just judgment, and
screening the guilty. This wickedness is most common among the
rich. Almost all the rulers of the land, will take bribes. Many
defrauders and injurious persons, many thieves, and robbers, and
murderers, escape through bribes. _Money is_ seen to be, here,
_the root of all evil_. "A little silver physic," it is said, "has
often brought a dead man to life."
The immense quantity of _opium_ that is smoked here, is a most
fruitful source of crime. Many of the practised villains, when
they wish to contrive new plans of wickedness, have recourse to
this _black commodity:_ which produces a most astonishing effect,
in enabling the _smokers_ to frame new schemes of darkness. It
has been said, and by a man of sound judgment and correct observation,
(I am sorry to say that he is an American, and an extensive dealer
in opium,) that the "_drug_" is doing more to break down the
superstitions of China, and to open the country to foreigners,
than all the efforts of missionaries. There is a degree of _apparent_
truth in this man's very honest remark, and I think just as much
_real_ truth, as if he had said, "to set fire to their houses,
and butcher the inhabitants, will do more to break down the
superstitions of China, and open the country to foreigners, than
all the efforts of Bibles, and tracts, and missionaries." Whether
it be a crime or not, to bring and sell opium to this people;‑‑and
whether it be a crime or not, for this people to use it, when brought
and sold by the hands of Christians, I will not undertake to say,‑‑but
I believe, stubborn facts compel me to believe, that _of all the
causes of crime,_ among the inhabitants of the Chinese empire,
OPIUM, brought and sold at the rate of a million of dollars per
month, _is the greatest_. It is nothing better, than to scatter
fire‑brands, arrows, and death.
Simply being put in prison, seems hardly to be regarded as a
punishment among this people; though multitudes are imprisoned
and suffered greatly thereby. The common instruments of punishment
are, (1.) the _bamboo_, about the size of large cane; (2.) the
_yoke_, a heavy plank three feet square, and thirty‑three pounds
weight; (3.) the _chain_ to fasten the criminals to the block;
(4.) _hand‑cuff_, large and long, made of wood; and (5.) _iron
fetters_.
Such are some of the most common crimes, and such are the instruments
of punishment in China. To determine the degree of criminality,
and fix the punishment accordingly, is among most nations very
difficult, but the Chinese make it very easy, at least they make
it appear so in their law books, The degrees of punishment are
twenty,‑‑the first ten, are with bamboo; the next eight, banishment;
the last two, death.
For a very small offence, amounting to the first degree of
criminality, the offender may receive ten blows; increasing his
guilt _five_ times, the fifty blows, &c. These blows may be changed
for the yoke, the chain, the hand‑cuffs, &c.
For some of the larger crimes, as bribery and the like, persons
are bambooed, and then sent into banishment. Sometimes, only from
one province to another, as from the north to the south, and from
the south to the north; at other times, criminals are sent a long
distance, to the frontiers of the empire, for many years, and even
for life.
The highest degrees of crime are punishable with death. The most
common mode of inflicting death, is by cutting off the head, and
this is done by a kind of short sword. For very heinous crimes,
the offender is sentenced to be _cut into ten thousand pieces_.
I intended to have said something to you, on the subject of _slavery_
in China but must pass it by without a single remark. Again adieu.
Your true friend,
E.C.B.
______
LETTER XIII.
_Canton_, (_China_,) _Dec_. 10, 1831.
MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS,‑‑"Then shall the dust return to the dust
as it was; and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it."
In an empire so ancient and populous as China, the number of human
beings that have _returned to the earth_, must be great indeed;
greater than any man can number. For more than thirty hundred years,
one generation after another, in awfully rapid succession, have
gone to the dead. Almost all the hills and uplands about Canton
and Macao, which are not covered with the habitations of the living,
are filled with the abodes of dead. In Macao, almost every rod
of ground, which is safe from water, even to hard, rocky hill tops,
has some emblem,‑‑a turfed hillock, a stone, or a little enclosure,
to remind the visiter of the sleepers below. When I have walked
over these grounds,‑‑these abodes of the dead, thoughts have arisen
in the mind, which you may conceive, but which I cannot express.
O, what multitudes will rise _here_, at the sound of the last trumpet!
What vast congregations will come up from these burying places,
and stand with us before the judgment seat of Christ! Every day
is adding to the number of this vast congregation. Death does not
wait for his victims‑‑death does not wait till the heathen have
the gospel preached unto them. And unless these multitudes of the
living, _speedily_ obtain mercy of him, of whom they are now
ignorant, how shall they come forth to the resurrection of life?
Will the heathen be saved, who never heard the gospel? I ask you,
dear children, do _you_ think the heathen can be saved, unless
the gospel be preached unto them, and they _believe_ in the name
of Jesus? It is very painful to all think, that all the millions
of our fellow creatures, who are now ignorant of the Savior, must,
when they die, sink down to hell. But how can it be otherwise?
"Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
But "how shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?
and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?
And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they
preach, except they be sent!" And now, dear children, I desire
to ask again, what do _you_ think of these words, which I have
quoted from the tenth chapter of Romans? What do you think St.
Paul meant? He means to say,‑‑if I understand him, he means to
affirm,‑‑in the most positive manner, by the questions which he
asks, that the heathen, who do not hear and believe the gospel,
_cannot be saved_.
I fear that many very good people have wrong ideas on this subject;
and do not consider and realize the awful condition of the heathen;
for I am persuaded, that if they did see and realize, they would
do very differently from what they ever have done yet; they would
feel and act as Jesus Christ did; they would be willing to become
poor, to labor and toil, and even die for the salvation of the
heathen.
With a desire that you may have correct ideas of the real condition
of the Chinese, I have been urged on to write these letters. I
have stated many facts; but you will desire, I presume, to know
something more about their _ideas of death, style of mourning,
funerals_, &c.
Having very little if any knowledge of the true God, the Chinese
are entirely ignorant of _another world:_‑‑of heaven and hell,‑‑of
the joys of the one, and the terrors of the other, as revealed
in the Bible. All their notions about the soul of man, are very
dark and confused. Many think that the _soul dies_, and ceases
to exist with the body. Others think that when the body dies, the
soul goes away and enters into other bodies‑‑birds, beasts, or
men. All this ignorance makes the Chinese very careless about death,
and all that which is to come upon them. They die like the brutes.
Such are their ideas of death.
When a parent dies, a messenger is sent to announce it to all the
relatives. A board, or a long slip of brownish white paper, is
hung up at the door, on which is written the person's name, age,
and virtues, &c. The children and grand‑children of the deceased,
sit on the ground, and weep and mourn. Relations come in and dress
the corpse; and many long and tedious ceremonies are performed.
Usually, after three times seven days, the funeral takes place.
A large concourse of friends and mourners assemble; and a procession
is formed with priests, bands of music, flags, &c. &c.‑‑all quite
like one of the marriage processions, which I have already
described. Meats, fruits, cakes of various kinds, are carried as
offerings to the dead, and the procession moves on to the burying
place. This is always selected with great care, and is usually
a hill. Only two things, it has been said, are feared by the Chinese
after death, "a watery grave, and a white ant sepulchre."
It is not every day, that they may bury the dead; they must wait
for a luck‑day. Many of these processions may be seen in a single
day. Some of the funerals are very expensive. Two occurred in this
neighborhood last summer; one of a father, the other of a wife,
on each of which more than ten thousand dollars were expended.
The _mourning_ costume is like a brownish white, with a perfectly
white napkin around the head, and sometimes around the loins; and
their shoes are exchanged for sandals.
By the death of a father, a son is disqualified for, and is obliged
to retire from office, for three years. Great care must be taken
to have a good burying place; and for want of such, and means to
bury the dead, bodies sometimes lie months and years in coffins,
unburied. There were _ten thousand_ such in Canton last year. I
know of one family where there are thirteen in this state.
But from the accounts of the dead, I think you will be willing,
if not glad, to have me desist. I will do so; and, if the Lord
will, I desire to proceed and give you some account of what has
been done for China. In the next letter, I propose to speak of
the labors of the Rev. Dr. Morrison, Tell then, farewell.
Your true friends,
E.C.B.
______
LETTER XIV.
_Canton_, (_China_,) _Dec_. 12, 1831.
MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS,‑‑You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that
we, through his poverty, might be made rich. You know how, while
on earth, he went about doing good; how he loved poor sinners,
and wept because they repented not; and how he loved little children,
and used to take them in his arms and bless them. You remember
how, at a certain time, he went out into a mountain to pray, and
continued all night in prayer to God. And you remember, how, just
before he went back to heaven, he commanded his disciples _to go
and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost_.
I will now tell you what has been done to make known the gospel
of God among the Chinese. Some have supposed that St. Thomas, one
of the twelve apostles, came into China, and preached the gospel;
and one man, a Portuguese, has supposed that he even passed to
America. There is no proof of all this, and nobody now believes
it. But it is very probable, though not quite certain, that some
missionaries from Syria, came into China, about seven hundred years
after the death of Christ. Roman Catholic missionaries came into
China more than five hundred years ago, and have continued here
ever since. At one time, they had a great many converts, but now
they have very few, for they have been persecuted, and most of
the missionaries driven out of the country. The Catholics, all
the time they have been in this country, have never given the Chinese
the Bible.
The very first thing Protestant Christians ever thought of doing
for the Chinese, was to _give them the Holy Bible:_ This was a
most excellent plan. It was first suggested by that good man, Joseph
Hardcastle, Esq. of England. He was then the treasurer of the London
Missionary Society.‑‑But as yet the Bible had never been translated
into the Chinese language, and there was nobody able to translate
it. So the Society resolved to send out a mission, and the Rev.,
now Dr. Robert Morrison, was the first person who engaged to go.
He had, for some time, been thinking on the subject of missions.
This was just at the time when Samuel J. Mills, and others with
him, in Williams College, were thinking on the same subject; and
like them, "he would have gone," I quote Dr. Morrison's own words,
"to any quarter of the globe, where the people were yet without
a divine revelation." He once thought of going to Africa, and would
doubtless have gone, had the way been opened. But the Lord had
other work for him to accomplish.
On the 31st of Jan. 1807, Dr. Morrison left England, crossed over
to the United States, where he tarried about twenty days, and became
acquainted with some good people in Philadelphia, from whence he
arrived in China on the 4th of September, the same year. His situation
in China was trying enough. He was alone, without companions, a
stranger in a strange land. At first he lived in a _godown_, a
room occupied for a store house, or a lodging‑place for servants,
where he studied, ate, and slept. His lamp was made of earthen
ware, and a large Bible served for a screen to keep the wind from
blowing it out. He lived like the Chinese; put on their dress,
the long frock, the thick‑soled shoes; let his hair grow long,
and ate with chop‑sticks. Afterwards, he found that this was not
the best way, so he changed his dress, and mode of living.
Before leaving England, Dr. Morrison obtained an imperfect and
incomplete manuscript copy of the New Testament in the Chinese
language. After he arrived in China, he was very diligent, night
and day, studying the language, continually reading, writing, and
speaking it; and, in about three years, began to print the New
Testament in Chinese. Soon after, he published a little tract,
called, "_The Divine Doctrine, concerning the Redemption of the
World_." He also published a catechism. And in 1813, six years
after his arrival, he completed the whole New Testament.
It was just at this time, when he had been in the field alone six
years, that another missionary arrived to assist him. I hope to
tell you more of Dr. Milne, in another letter. Before this time,
Dr. Morrison had prepared two books about the Chinese language,
written in English, in order to assist other missionaries in
learning the language. He had also instructed, for about two years,
four orphan boys. I have not time, in a single letter, to tell
you all I could wish, about what he has done. He has published
many books, and accomplished much in other ways.
In the Chinese language, he has prepared and published the New
Testament, and two tracts above mentioned; the largest half of
the Old Testament, the other half was done by Dr. Milne; an outline
of the Old Testament history; daily Morning and Evening Prayers,
being a translation of the Common Prayer Book; also, a Hymn Book;
and, recently, a book in three or four volumes, called the _Family
Instructor:_ making in all, about 20 vols. Besides, he has written
other books, but had not money to publish them. The translation
of the _whole Bible_ was completed in the autumn of 1819, and
published soon after.
In English, he has written and published two volumes of sermons
and lectures; a little book about China, for Sabbath school
children; he has also written a great many papers about China,
which have been printed in the Canton newspapers, "The Canton
Register," published by an English gentleman, and in the "Anglo
Chinese Gleaner," published at Malacca; and others, printed in
other places.
In Chinese and English, that is, a part of each page Chinese, and
a part English, he has written and published six quarto volumes,
about the size of Scott's Bible, constituting a most excellent
Dictionary; also six octavo vols. in the same style. These twelve
volumes have been prepared for the purpose of assisting those who
wish to learn the Chinese language.
About a year after Dr. Morrison came to China, the English East
India Company wished him to be their translator. He complied, and
has ever since acted in that capacity. He thought it his duty to
do so, that he might, by the labor of his own hands, relieve others
from the burden of supporting himself and family. This, in a
considerable degree, he has done. For upwards of twenty years he
has received _no_ salary from any charitable institution. The
London Missionary Society assist him every year in defraying a
part of his house‑rent, which, in China, is very high‑‑ten or twelve
hundred dollars annually. Being translator for the company, they
were willing to defray the expenses of publishing his Dictionary,
which was more than £12,000.‑‑And besides this, and what he has
done for the support of his own family, it has enabled him to give
between 8 and 10,000 dollars for the promotion of Christianity
among the Chinese; a considerable part of this sum was expended
in founding the Anglo Chinese College at Malacca; of this, I will
tell you more when I come to write about Dr. Milne.
The same day he became translator to the company, he was married
to Miss Morton, an excellent and pious lady, who had a long time
resided in India. Their first born son died the same day in which
he breathed the breath of life. The infant was interred on the
top of a little hill, at the north extremity of Macao; and in a
beautiful enclosure, not far from where he now sleeps, are the
earthly remains of his mother. Mrs. Morrison died June 10, 1821.
In 1824, Dr. Morrison visited England, and returned in 1826. While
in his native country, he married Miss Armstrong, a pious and
accomplished lady. He has now living in China, six children; four
sons and two daughters. His family reside at Macao, for the Chinese
will not allow foreign ladies to come to Canton. His eldest son,
John Robert Morrison, is already quite a master of Chinese, and
acts as translator to the British merchants in China.
Dr. Morrison is now fifty years old, and it is more than 24 years
since he came to China. The Lord has been very good to him, and
has blessed him, and given good success to the labor of his hands.
He has lived to see many and most glorious results from the very
small beginnings he was permitted and enabled to make; but the
judgment of the great day, only, can display all the effects of
his long and arduous labors. Every Christian prays in secret; but
he has often preached in secret, with his doors locked around him,
and only one or two to listen to the sound of the gospel.
No church has yet been gathered and organized in China. Several
individuals have believed, and have been baptized; and the Lord's
supper has, occasionally, been administered. The first baptism
was in 1814. This man came to Dr. Morrison's house, and heard him
talk of Jesus, the first year he was in China. "At a spring of
water," says Dr. Morrison, "issuing from a lofty hill by the
sea‑side, away from human observation, I baptized, into the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, _Tsae‑a‑ko_. O that the Lord may cleanse
him from all sin in the blood of Jesus, and purify his heart by
the influences of the Holy Spirit. May he be the first fruits of
a great harvest; one of millions who shall believe, and be saved
from the wrath to come."
During much of his time in China, Dr. Morrison has preached to
the English and American residents. He is now with his family at
Macao; and, during the past season, has usually had four religious
services on each Lord's day; a morning and evening service in
English, and a morning and evening service in Chinese. From 4 to
20 persons have usually attended on the English, and about 15 on
the Chinese services.