SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS.
It is the business of a wise man (as our illustrious _Confutzi_
and _Menzi_ say) to seek the _conditions_ of the visible forms of
things--whether the things be those which we see, or only those which
take form in the mind. The conditions are what the Barbarians call
_laws_. We see that the use of a certain earth will enrich some soils,
and impoverish others; we examine into the cause; we try to discover
the conditions which make this difference. We know that, generally and
broadly, the elements are the same, but they are differently combined.
The Western Barbarians are of the same race with ourselves--inherently
the general nature is the same. What difference of combination of
similar elements has produced results so dissimilar?
In the mighty East, where civilization goes back into the most distant
and dim antiquity, _the laws_ which underlie organized governments
and customs, and which give form and life to communities, are very
different, and sometimes antagonistic. It is certain, therefore, that
man, really the same everywhere, has, in the course of ages, evolved
from his own and surrounding nature very different forms of social
life in the East and in the West. Man and nature radically the same,
have, in different conditions, grown and put forth very dissimilar
shapes of growth. The tree and the fruit are rooted in similar soil,
have grown in similar air, sun, and rain. Even the trees are not wholly
unlike, nor the fruit; yet, most unlike, when duly considered; and,
when regarded with a view to usefulness and to perpetuation, _one_ may
demand the axe, and the _other_ only the nice pruning-knife [quin-tse].
But a difference so great implies a different seed-germ--not
necessarily; for, from the same germ, one may have a bitter, even a
poisonous fruit, which finer culture can make sweet and healthful.
If we assume, then, the same germ, whence so great diversity? In my
poor mind, when, among the Barbarians, sad and bewildered by the
disorder, confusion, and complexity, this question tediously presented
itself--"Is man a creature of chance--is there no perfect rule?" I
would say, "Is his _growth_ fortuitous like plants, beginning with
similar germs and yet dissimilar--so, growing according to the hidden
differences and the differing circumstances? Is there no common
standard--no fixed measure--no absolute truth?" But, in my poor
thought, I also said, "The Sovereign Lord lives in his children, and
moral truth (_divine illumination_) must be. _It is simply true_,
and can be no other. Human _forms_ of social being must be measured
by it; and, however complexed and confused, _are so measured_, and
will not long exist if radically inconsistent. Yet these forms may be
bad without being wholly rootless, and grow _deformed_, strange, and
noxious."
In looking upon the disorderly and complex features of Barbarian
life, two things prominently strike my poor mind. One is, _a restless
activity_, accompanied with love of personal distinction and admiration
of strength. The other, is the singular _position of women_. To the
former, may be charged the selfish greed, the callous indifference, the
delight in forays and plunder.
To the latter, that aspect of dissolute disorder, that curious
complexity of ideas and principles, which render the whole Barbarian
Society a marvel--I liked to have said _a disgust_--to one unaccustomed
to it.
The position of women, as it affects _the family_, no doubt has an
all-pervading influence--if that position be wrong, we have, at once, a
grand source of evil.
How far the _great Superstition_, super-imposed upon the _olden_
Idolatry (dark and cruel) may have deepened the shades of Barbaric
nature, and strengthened its old admiration of force and rapine, may be
only surmised. Certain it is that the Jewish _Jah_ is not unlike the
_Odin_ of these tribes; and (as I have said) the gentle Christ-god,
himself a Jew worshipper of Jah, has been received only as subordinate;
in fact, a _Sacrifice_ by _Jah_ made to himself to appease himself! A
character, in fine, not _strong enough_ for these fierce tribes.
We have the _government and the family_ resting upon a different
basis in the West from what they rest upon in the East. In the West,
it is difficult to say if there be _any rule_ upon which either
securely reposes. In the East, the _rule_ is as clear, and as clearly
recognized, and as undoubtedly _obeyed_, as _any_ rule can be. The
existence of the Sovereign Lord is not more certainly admitted, and
his authority not more implicitly submitted to. This is the rule of
OBEDIENCE.
But aside from principles which control comprehensive forms, like the
Family and Government, there are secondary growths, usages (perhaps not
referable to any marked rule), which have had powerful influence. For
instance, the mode of trying persons suspected of Crime, appears to my
poor mind to be very fantastic and irrational. The Barbarians, however,
boast of the superiority of their way over all other tribes, ancient or
modern.
When a crime has been committed, and some one, suspected, has been
arrested, he is brought before a Judge, whose duty it is to see if
there be good reasons for the arrest. The very first thing, we should
think, would be to ask the accused to give any explanation he may
wish. Not at all; he is told to say _nothing_; for if he do it will be
recorded and may go to _his hurt_. How to his hurt unless he be guilty?
How it may be that the accused could, at once, explain everything--but
no--the officers who have made the arrest wish to work out a _theory_
of their own; and the Judge, listening to these officers, who are
uneducated, rude, and often at work for a large prize, commits the
accused to prison to be tried over again, really, at a future day,
by some other Judge. Meantime everybody who, upon the theory of the
officers, is imagined to know anything, is ordered to give security
that they will appear at the next trial, and say what they know. And
if a witness cannot give this security (frequently the case with the
poor), he is also thrust into prison. In this manner persons, who have
been so unfortunate as to be fixed upon by these ignorant officers, are
treated like the accused, and put to great inconvenience and sometimes
suffering, either in themselves, or their families, or affairs. This
goes on--the next trial is postponed, delay after delay, whilst the
officers are working out _their theory_; and finally the accused is
discharged and the witnesses also, the whole disgraceful proceeding
being a _blunder_, in which innocent people have been punished as
_criminal_, and the _Criminal_ has _escaped_! A natural and simple
examination of the accused, when first brought before the Judge, would
have saved all this loss, suffering, and shame! Such an absurdity can
only be to the advantage of the guilty!
A man may be caught under circumstances of guilt so certain that there
is no _rational_ hypothesis of innocence. Yet, with the very blood and
property of the murdered perhaps upon him, surprised, red-handed in
the very act, he will be treated as if he were merely _suspect_; _will
be cautioned to say nothing_; will have every chance and opportunity
to escape by reason of the unaccountable mode of procedure. For he is
still innocent. Such is the hypothesis; and disregarding the obvious
and simple way of asking for an explanation consistent with innocence
(when guilt would be doubly manifest), the other ridiculous hypothesis
is maintained, if possible, and the whole community and many innocent
people are afflicted and tortured with the most minute and painful
investigations (having perhaps no sort of relation to the matter), to
see if some doubt may not arise _somehow_, not as to the guilt, but as
to some parts of the case as _imagined_ to be!
Thus, _theories_ of guilt are to be established when the fact is
_patent_, if one will simply look at the proofs immediately at hand!
In this case just supposed, too, there is no trial at all of the _man_
so clearly seen to be guilty. Twelve men are convened by a sort of
inferior Judge, first to see how the dead man came to be dead--it is
certain as anything can well be! Yet this kind of Court must go through
the long, tedious, and painful inquiry, _how_ the man died. Witnesses
are dragged from home, from their pursuits, ruined may be; the whole
community horrified, and the twelve men kept from home and business,
and shocked by the most disgusting examinations of the dead! This whole
process seems rather designed to give fees and business to the petty
Judge and officers who compose this singular tribunal.
But when this _sham_ Court has got through, the accused meantime, and
the witnesses, are still awaiting the real inquiry, which may be put
off for many weeks.
When, after tedious delays, _twenty-four_ petty judges, assisted by
an officer, having made up their minds to formally charge the accused
with the crime, he is brought before a Judge, who is now for the first
time to really try the man, another curious thing occurs. The Judge
is not trusted alone to proceed--he must have twelve little Judges,
and several Lawyers, to assist him. The little judges are the JURY,
not selected for knowledge nor excellency, but any twelve men who can
be readily got. Generally they are very poor represervatives of even
the average wisdom and morality. They know nothing of law, nor of the
Court, nor are they in the least competent to undergo the complex,
tedious, and artificial _trial_ to which they are about to be put, as
well as the accused. However, the business of these twelve is _not_ to
look directly at the man and at the clear evidence against him--which
might be within even their competency--but they are sworn upon the
_Sacred Writings and by Jah_ (under severe penalties) to try the
accused according _to the Law and the evidence_. Now, the Lawyers and
the Judge determine as to the law, and the twelve men must obey them as
to _that_--the twelve, however, are to determine as to the evidence.
This means--they are to see and hear the witnesses, examine the
objects of proof (which may take many days); keep all the statements,
conflicting, confused, or other; hear all that the Lawyers may say;
watch the demeanour of the witnesses, and of the accused--and they
must take the _Case_ as presented and offered to them, however absurd
much of it may be--and, finally, after all, they are not to take _this
Evidence_ (as it is called) to judge it for _themselves_--no, they must
take it _under the direction of the Judge_. They are sworn _to try_
according to the Law and the evidence; but _evidence_ means _legal_
evidence! and the Judge (aided by the Lawyers) directs the twelve men
as to what is _evidence_. Under these conditions, one may judge as to
the usefulness of this Jury--unless as a contrivance for the torturing
of the innocent and the clearing of the guilty!
I was present and examined this matter--for from the common boast of
this excellent Jury-mode of _trial_, I wished to see with my own mind.
At length, the twelve men being confined, so that _they_ cannot escape,
in a sort of box; the Judge and the Lawyers being in their places,
attired in the absurd wigs and black gowns [phe-ty-kos] (somebody once
whispered in my ear, black-guards) [kon-di-to-ri]; the accused is
ordered to stand up. The charge of murder is read;--confused by so much
barbarous jargon, that no one but the Judge and the Lawyers understand
it--in fact, oftentimes do not understand it--and the criminal often
escapes trial because the _proper_ jargon has not been used. This
_mixed tongue_ is the only one allowed in these trials, and must be
taken from the fountain of Wisdom (as the Law book is called containing
it). The speech is uncertain, only known to the Lawyers; and a mistake
spoils the whole charge. Well, after more or less wrangling among the
Lawyers, the charge finally stands. I must explain; there are _two
sides_ of Lawyers--one (hired to do so), by _every means_ in its power
tries to get the accused discharged, and is helped to do this by all
the machinery of the trial--the other merely watches the proceedings,
and sees that they are not too absolutely controlled by the other
side. The latter, also, open and state the matter, and conduct it;
but neither side works simply to obtain the truth. On the side of
the accused, if guilty, the truth is _not_ wanted; and, on the other
side, there is no interest in the matter which greatly moves. But the
interest for the accused may be not merely to gratify, in some cases,
powerful relatives, but to obtain as large _a sum_ of money as the
Lawyers can get--which, where life is at stake, may be all the accused
has now, or may, if discharged, acquire. In fact, in cases of robbery,
the Lawyers for the accused may have received their compensation from
the very plunder!
The accused says to the charge either _Guilty_ or _Not Guilty_! This
is a mere form. Then the names of the twelve men are called over,
to see that none have got away--for it is a hateful and disgusting
business often, wherein they _instinctively_ feel they really have no
function--and yet enforced upon them, often to their actual great loss
and suffering.
How the scene fairly opens. The twelve little judges in their box;
the big one sitting aloft, with pig-tail-ear-flapper wig; the Lawyers
in pig-tail wigs and gowns; the officers of the Court; the witnesses,
cowering and afraid; the accused in his high, strong cage (or box); and
the spectators, friends, relatives, associates of the witnesses and of
the accused--women and men--crowding in the dark corners of the Hall of
trial.
The Lawyers call and examine the witnesses. These are not permitted
to tell the truth in their own way at all. They are sworn upon
the _Sacred Writings_, upon pain of penalties of the Law, and the
dreadful fear of the awful Jah and Hell, _to speak the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth_! Now, the truth which they
are to speak must be that _sort_ of truth which the Lawyers and the
Judge determine upon to hear--not by any means _that_ truth which the
witness, in his simplicity, is about to utter! Here, then, an honest
and conscientious witness is likely to be at once bewildered; but a
callous, self-possessed one, who does not intend to say one word more
than he can help, finds himself doing exactly what the Lawyers and the
Court understand by the oath--that is, to speak _for_ the one side or
the other; _not for truth_!
Consider the position of a witness, perhaps a timid woman, or an
inexperienced person, never before called upon to take the _awful
oath_, never before in such a place! Confronted, made to stand
up, _thrust_ without respect, sometimes rudely and with positive
disrespect; treated, in fact, as if a party to the crime, though
perfectly ignorant of anything excepting of some chance _link_ required
in the _theory_ of the charge--thrust forward into the gaze of the
Judge, of the whole assembly. Every eye is fastened upon the trembling
witness. She is ordered in a rough tone to hold up her hand, to take
the _oath_, _to kiss the Sacred Writings_! What with the crowd, the
novel and painful position, by this time the poor woman, when asked a
question, can scarcely speak. The old, half-deaf Judge, turns his awful
be-wigged head to her, raises his ear-flapper and says, "Speak louder,
witness; I can't hear you." An officer bawls out, "Silence!" and, not
unlikely, the poor witness fairly collapses, faints, and she is allowed
to be seated.
The Lawyers examine the witnesses, and if one begins to say something
very damaging, if possible, will interrupt him; or, by and by, will
insinuate some vile charge against him, to destroy his character with
the hearers--not that there be any truth in the insinuation, but merely
to effect the purpose of a vile _minion_ paid to defend, perhaps, a
notorious offender!
Thus the _trial_ proceeds; every effort is made on the side of the
accused (which is the active side) to mislead, to confuse, to bewilder.
The Law, read from big books, is constantly referred to, now to stop a
witness in what he is about to say; now to get something _already_ said
scratched off from the minds of the twelve men; and now to take the
opinion of the Judges as to whether this or that should, or should not,
be heard by the Jury.
All these things go on day after day, not at all because there is any
doubt as to the guilt of the accused, but because by these confused
and interminable proceedings, the Lawyers who act for him expect to
get him discharged--and discharged, declared by the twelve men to be
_not guilty_! This is the great point; for, if this occur, it does not
matter at all that the accused himself confess to the crime, _on no
account_ can he ever be arrested again for the offence! "But how, when
the proofs of guilt are present and so certain, can the Lawyers expect
to get the twelve men to go against their very senses?" To answer this
is to show the nature of the Jury system very plainly.
When all the wranglings and speeches and Law-readings of the Lawyers
have at last ended; when the Judge--who has in the course of the
trial already loaded the twelve with all sorts of instructions as
to what they are to keep in mind as _legal_ evidence, and what
they are to leave out of mind--has made a long and confused speech
(often interrupted by the Lawyers) recapitulating those parts of the
conflicting mass of evidence which, and _only_ which, _is_ evidence,
and has told them the manner in which this evidence must be applied
to the charge; has finally told them that the crime charged must be
the precise _crime_ laid down in the Law-books by that _name_, and
none other; and that having found beyond all doubt that that crime,
upon the _legal_ evidence, has been committed, then has _the accused
committed the crime_ so defined, and so proved? To be certain of this,
the accused must not only be found to have done it, but he must have
known that he was doing it--that is, he must have been sound in mind.
And if in any of these particulars there be any doubt, the accused must
be acquitted; and further, every one of the twelve must agree--if any
_one_ withhold his assent, then the prisoner cannot be declared to be
guilty!
With all these clear and simple directions (!) as to how they are
to use their minds, an officer leads the twelve into a strong-room,
and fastens them in! to consider their _verdict_ (as it is called).
Not to consider simply and directly upon the plain evidence of their
senses, and according to reason ordinarily used, but to consider _their
Verdict_--a technical, artificial affair, made by the Lawyers, and only
fit for _their_ minds--if even _they_ could do anything satisfactory to
an honest man with it!
The twelve are locked in and guarded by an officer; deprived of
food, of rest, of any recreation; perhaps already exhausted from the
hair-splitting [di-do-tzi] and intricate directions and proceedings.
They are _Sworn_ to give their verdict according to the _Law_ (first)
and the _Evidence_ (second). The evidence, however, being _all law_.
Then, too, they are to say either _Guilty_, or _not guilty_; and no
more.
Now, the Lawyer's expectation may become verified. There is no sort of
doubt in any of the twelve that the accused is a horrid wretch, and
that he is guilty. But one man has got hold of an idea, based upon
something said by the Judge, or perhaps only the suggestion of his own
mind; and think of the vanity, the stupidity, the dishonesty, the mere
indifference, the obstinacy, the excessive timidity, the weakness,
which is likely to be in each of the twelve; one man has got _his_
opinion--it is a matter of conscience. The one man is sufficient.
Nothing can move him. Hour after hour passes. Night comes on--hunger
knocks at the stomach; home is wanted; business is exacting; illness
oppresses some, lassitude and sheer exhaustion overpower others--the
one persists, only more obstinate by opposition--"The man no doubt is
guilty, but I doubt if he be guilty according to law!"
They cannot agree upon a verdict. The Judge and everybody else long
since have gone to _their_ homes and pleasures. _They_ (the twelve)
cannot escape unless they agree. To be sure, they may report to the
Judge late on the next day that they cannot agree--only, however, to
receive new directions (!), and be sent back again and kept till they
shall agree!
Human nature gives way. The one, strong and resolute, overpowers the
eleven--or, rather, there have been only a part who would not have
given over long ago. The fine maxim of English law--"_It is better that
a thousand guilty escape than that one innocent suffer_"--turns the
scale. There is a _doubt_--or something which looks like it--"let the
accused have the benefit of it!"
Now, in this scene, I am taking it for granted that the twelve are
really not dishonest--not one of them. But suppose _one_ is, in secret,
the determined friend of the accused!
Thus, the Verdict of the Jury (not the direct and honest opinion of
twelve men in a rational and ordinary use of their minds) is recorded
in the Court--_Not guilty_. And a murderer is at once discharged;
perhaps escorted with applause from the place by associates of his
evil courses. Restored to the community which doubts not his guilt,
and which has been horrified, agitated, and oppressed by its frightful
details! It will be noticed how admirably everything, in this system,
works to procure the escape of the guilty; but it must not be
overlooked that it falls with crushing weight upon the _innocent_.
Simple and direct inquiry would generally clear him at once. But
no--the _theory_ in the minds of the officers is, that this _innocency_
is a fraud; and the whole machinery works just as irrationally as
before; because, the clear evidences of innocency are disregarded--the
prisoner's guilt is unreasonably assumed (contrary to the reverse
legal maxim) _by the officers_; and the whole crushing blow of this
assumed guilt falls upon the innocent. He is thrust into prison; torn
from family, friends, human sympathy; his actual trial is put off
week after week, aye, month after month, whilst the officers hunt
for what does not exist outside of their imaginations; and, finally,
from sheer shame, the poor victim is discharged before an _actual
trial_--discharged, it may be ruined and for ever tainted with the
foul and unjust suspicion. Or, perhaps, finally _tried_, escapes after
a long, tedious and confused scene; where the officers, anxious to
convict one whom _they_ have so long assumed to be guilty, contrive
to throw just enough of suspicion upon the victim to render his life
ever after insupportable! However, he finally goes at large--ruined
by enormous expenses, health shattered by confinement in prison,
and _tainted_ in character. The victim of an absurd system--for the
verdict is, for him, irrational and cruel. If, in the other case, _not
guilty_ did not mean what the words imply--so, in this, the Jury give
a no more meaning _Verdict_. No expression of any actual opinion. No
sympathy, no regret; nothing to reinstate the unfortunate victim of
official stolidity and conceit. _Nothing_ whatever; not so much as any
compensation for loss of time and money. Meantime, during this pursuit
of the innocent, the real criminal has got safely away.
Now, this strange _Jury system_, boasted of as the _Palladium_ of
Liberty by the English Barbarians, strikes my poor mind as something
very cumbersome, irrational, and hurtful. The criminal class may
well esteem it, for it seems exactly contrived to set the criminal
at liberty, and to vex, terrify, annoy, and confuse everybody else.
Witnesses themselves often fare more hardly than the actual criminal!
and Society is shocked by needless and reiterated exposures of every
particular of dreadful things to no rational purpose--unless to give
fees to Lawyers and a host of busy officials, who live and fatten in
these horrors.
One might suspect that the whole machinery was contrived by the Lawyers
(called _criminal_) to effect their purpose--that is, to protect their
friends and supporters; the numerous men, women, and half-grown youths
swarming everywhere, and known as the _criminal class_.
Another unjust custom is when a man offends a Judge, he is not at once
brought before him for reproof and proper correction. No; for his
disrespect he is compelled to pay a _fine_ [tsig] in money which may
beggar his innocent family, or prevent his creditors from obtaining
their dues; or, _unable_ to pay, must lie in prison till it _be paid_,
or until released by the angry Judge. Thus making the innocent to
suffer! How much better in our _Flowery Land_, where disrespectful
conduct is at once reprimanded and, if the disrespect be marked,
punished on the spot, in the presence of the magistrate, and under his
paternal direction.
These may serve to illustrate usages not readily referable to any
principle. They are rooted in old customs, when general ignorance and
universal poverty made the mass one, and when simplicity and directness
were natural. They are retained now in an artificial and totally
different state of society, for no better reason than the English
Barbarians have for other abuses and enormities--_they support the
fungi which cling to them_! And the upper classes find their interests
concerned in maintaining things as they are. The lower classes, too
ignorant to see, are made to believe that nothing in human Wisdom
and experience excels these very Laws and customs! The Barbarian
stolidity, too, in the well-to-do classes, supports these singular
views as to the perfection of the Laws and system of administration.
These classes constantly mistake this _stolidity_ for solidity of
character. When an evil is unmistakable, none the less, instead of
removing it, they say, "Better bear those ills we have than fly to
others we know not of!" (Quoting from their great Shakespeare.) But
they do not stop to consider if it must necessarily follow that when
one quits one ill he flies to _another_. As if one with a sore finger
should refuse to apply any remedy to the _finger_ for fear he might
thereupon find a sore upon his leg!
Perplexed with these anomalous conditions, and by the stupid conceit
and selfish indifference--the callousness and greed of the English
Barbarians--I have wondered if, after all, these men were not of a
different kind [sty-pho]. Possibly, the Sovereign Lord and Father
of men, for wise purposes, may have created different sorts of
men. Animals of the same type differ in swiftness, in strength, in
intelligence. The Western Barbarians, though of the same type, may be
inferior to our Illustrious people in the moral and mental functions.
For some purpose in Eternal Wisdom, the Almighty Lord has given them
strength of body, energy, and an _intellect_ sharp in matters of the
_instinct_--which refers to the needs and passions of the body--thus,
calculating, ingenious in contrivance, and inordinately selfish; but
has not given them a large moral faculty, nor a broad and comprehensive
mind. _They are, therefore, incapable of improvement beyond a limited
range._
The Idolatry, and its horrible grotesqueness--the inefficacy of the
good in the character of the Christ-god, to influence the least
abatement in the passion for Force; the cold-blooded abuses, and the
confusion of error and truth, may be thus accounted for.
This, however, suggests a continuance of the evils which have fallen
upon _others_. The _All-wise_ sees where chastisement is due--and
allows the Western Barbarians their time. The offences of the East need
chastisement. The quickness, strength, and greed of the Barbarians,
unchecked by moral considerations, make them the scourge of other
distant peoples not possessing these qualities. The scourge is needed,
otherwise it would not be permitted. There is a sufficiency of morality
to prevent dissolution; and the Western tribes will no doubt fulfil
their appointed task.
Still, in their present forms, rooted in a _lower_ type of man, they
must disappear; not lost, but absorbed and blended in a better and
nobler race. In the East, I suspect this _highest_ type has always
existed. Here, from immemorial ages and ages [tang-se-yan-se] the
simple worship of the Sovereign Lord, and the divine faculty in man,
have found their best expression, and taken a fixed and steadfast root
in Government and in Society!
I may be mistaken, and it is possible that the Western tribes may be
capable of attaining to this settled order--but it must be after very
long moons and thousands of moons [lir-re-ty-sin], during which they
shall have overturned and reformed existing laws and customs.
I may refer shortly to some of the more striking of these, so curiously
and radically different from our notions in the _Central_ Kingdom, and
so erroneously conceived in respect of the DIVINE ORDER. _First._--As
to the character and worship of the Sovereign Lord of Heaven, and
Father of men. Concerning the errors in regard to the true character
and proper recognition of the Heavenly Lord, I need scarcely say more.
There are wise barbarians who do not differ from my poor thought as
to the need of an entire reformation upon this whole matter, which
underlies nearly all genuine improvement in morals, in government, and
in "Society."
_Second._--As to Government. This must be seen to exist in the
eternal order and nature of things, and not at all in any _Contract_
[Kong-phu], "social" or other. Therefore whatever name be given to its
Head, _the Function_ is as inviolable as is the Divinity from which it
comes. If this Head, however, be incapable of properly representing
the divine function, it does not therefore fail, but the nearest
_fit_, in the established order acts. The Book of Rites and the great
Council of the Illustrious, with us, see to this proper and orderly
succession. No one is born to be absolutely Head--the Book of Rites and
the Illustrious _Calao_, in our system, may see to it that the Head be
fit for the due and divine order. Therefore, no one is born by _right
of birth_ to govern, nor to make, nor to administer, laws. Wisdom and
knowledge only, may entitle their possessors to take rank among those
to whom government and administration shall be committed; and these may
be changed, degraded, exalted, and removed as they conduct themselves,
and not according to any family, nor hereditary distinction. Nor are
_Places_ created for the aggrandisement of any, continued for the
benefit of families, nor, in any case, made hereditary. Places are for
the whole, and those who fill them are placed there, in trust, for the
good of the whole, and must properly discharge the trust. They are
never for the individual--always for the State.
_Third._--As to the family. The Family being the _Prototype_ [mo-dsi]
of Government, should show the Divine order. It must be one; not a
divided, unintelligent _accident_ [phatsi]. It must have a clear
faculty, and understand its true and vital significance--for the
community is but an aggregation of families, and as these are so is the
State. Then, to have disorder there is to have disorder throughout!
There _must_, therefore, be in the Family, obedience to its head,
order, and good conduct. If there be insubordination, disorder,
immorality, disrespect, and disobedience to the natural head, then that
is a disorderly family, and those who are guilty of the disobedience,
disrespect, and disorder are _criminals_, to be corrected, restrained,
and reformed.
Woman, upon this right conception of the family, finds her proper and
her honoured place. She is subordinate, but not in any humiliating
sense; she is subordinate, because, in the very nature of her function
as woman in the economy of nature, she cannot be otherwise--she _is_
timid, defenceless, dependent. She has a right to the tender care and
protection of her male relatives; and she, on her part, is bound to be
obedient, submissive, orderly; and, upon these, affection follows.
Her children are bound to respect and to obey her, and she is bound
to have a care for them, and to respect and obey her husband as the
unquestioned centre of regard and authority. The father (and husband)
_is_ the Head of the family; there is no divided nor disputed power.
Upon _him_ rests the responsibility of due order and proper position.
From her nature and duties, the woman lives retired within her house.
If she go abroad, it will be only from necessity, and then in the most
quiet, modest, and unobstrusive way. She lives for her relatives, her
family; not to attract the admiration of others, nor with the faintest
idea that she may shine _abroad_--to be so charged would be to be
charged as _shameless_. Only by this degraded _class_, who are barely
tolerated without the city, and under the rigid supervision of the
officers of order and decorum--could such a purpose be supposed to be
thought of? She dresses with neatness, according to the established
order, but always with such modesty that nothing is offensive to the
chastest eye. She understands the range of her activity and of her
affections. It is within the circle of family and relatives. All her
accomplishments are to make her home pleasing. Duties and places are
settled. She lives for those to whom she belongs, and who also belong
to her. Her smiles are for her husband, and for her children, and her
relations. She has no thought of going abroad to shine, nor to waste
the time and money which belong to her family upon strangers. She never
dreams that she has any _mission_ which calls her away from her home.
She has no _call_ to "clothe the ragged," wash other people's dirty
children, reform evil-doers, "convert the _heathen_," nor support
"Society!" (These are some of the phrases which you will hear among the
Barbarian women).
Where women have not husbands, none the less they have relatives, and
their home is with them. They have a right to this home, and are bound
to do their duty in it, submissively, usefully, and quietly.
If the Western Barbarians would see to it that all women, married or
unmarried, were duly cared for in homes of relatives, _as of right_,
and that they also made themselves welcome there by their usefulness
and obedience, they would find an end of that agitation as _to Women's
Rights_ existing among them. Rights would be as indisputable as
duties--and the first of these would be a quiet, modest, and rational
obedience to their natural protectors, who, in turn, would be bound
to respect and protect them. And if by any strange chance a woman was
absolutely without relatives (a thing nearly impossible in our _Flowery
Land_), then the State should see to it that she had a suitable home.
The education of woman, in a well-ordered Society, is also fixed and
clear. It has immediate relation to her position and her duties.
She is from the first never disturbed in the natural order. She sees
her relatives always quiet, modest, _obedient_. She never thinks this
state of things to be wrong. She perceives the manner of female life;
its seclusion, its devotion to the family, its purpose, and end. There
is no complexity about it, no _outside_ glitter, no field for show, no
seeking for excitement and display. All her duties are at home--_her_
happiness is _there_; _there_ she is to be attractive, and there she
is to attract--the love and respect of her husband, the regard of her
relatives, the affection and obedience of her children!
So, her education needs no straining after effect. It looks directly
to her duties, to her natural function and place; and to those
accomplishments, of mind and of person, which shall enable her to
be happy with books, with music, and the like; and shall add to the
pleasures of her home.
All these things are common-place with us--so simple as to appear
trivial. Our Illustrious wives and mothers could not _understand_ the
reasons for their elaboration--they have never seen the women of the
Western Barbarians!
The position of women in the _Social_ system of the West, on the whole,
is the most remarkable thing in it.
I have made sufficiently suggestive remarks in the progress of these
_Observations_; and only now have to add a word or two upon the
_general_ effect.
It gives a wonderful life, restlessness, and colour to the whole aspect
of Barbarian life. Think of all the women in our Illustrious Land, at
once leaving their homes, the seclusion of their orderly houses and
lives, and rushing everywhere with the men, over the Land! And, not
only so, dressed in splendid gaiety of colour, and adorned with gems
and feathers, crowding into all places of amusement and of travel!
Nor this only, but showing themselves, in public places, with men,
where paintings and sculpture, and things here only seen by men alone,
are exhibited! And, often, so dressed as to cause even the man to
blush!
Why, the face of social life is completely altered. Instead of gravity,
dignity, and an undivided attention to the duties of daily life,
everything is rendered restless, confused; there seems to be no natural
order, nor scarcely natural (cultured) decorum.
But we must not be misled. Nature is too strong to be pushed aside--and
with cultivation, even though imperfect, the moral instinct lives
and saves. Habit, too, "is a second nature;" (as our divine Confutzi
says); and what would be so overwhelming, if at once done, being usual,
necessarily _has been_ subordinated to some rule--and made, at least,
tolerable.
And now, in drawing these _Observations_ to an end, perhaps, I may
add, in respect of my poor and unworthy thoughts, that if I have
said amiss, and which offends, I beg our Illustrious will pardon.
To our _Literati_, exalted in wisdom, there is but little to which
they may curiously look--but to _our people_, if any there be with
whom some discontent may have been caused by too close intimacy with
_Missionaries_ in our ports; by these let my poor _Observations_ be
studiously pondered--that they may praise the Sovereign Lord of Heaven,
who has given them to live in the _Central and Illustrious Kingdom_;
where a true morality and a true worship are known; and where due ORDER
AND PEACE, resting upon the unchangeable Heavenly order and peace, are
established!
Here, are no brutal worship of Force, and admiration of bloody
plunders. Content to the due ordering of affairs, and with peace
within, our Illustrious Realm seeks no aggrandisement, dreams of no
conquests; and _wishes to do nothing but good_. It has no fears for its
own position, nor jealousy of others. It is simply calm, strong, wise,
and self-poised. It demands no more from others abroad than that it may
peacefully live; and _be treated with that respect which it accords to
those who practise moderation and virtue_.
FINIS.
Barrett, Sons & Co., Printers, 21, Seething Lane, London, E.C.