th yalla in the minds of cultivated Earopo thinkers, Tt is ensy to say that the ordinary 'Englishman cares very little about the Flowery Land, and per hops we shall not do' well to consaro him havellly for his ignorance; but vane and oration should assuredly be competently instructed theruselvos, bo-fore they attempt to teach others, Tt fet, a8 hua been said of the Anglo Snxon'n' fmpreswion of Tndia, that the Bnglishman's abiding idea of China is a contig " heathendom and hot But though this is very well fir na it goos, on the present occasion wahaze to change the point of view, ler thie amount of information afhig natal boston by Very fow intelligent Chinamen have visited Europe. Wo might count on our fingers the number of educated natives who have soon London or Paris; and yot it is amazing to note how much they know about us. This phenomenon fores upon na the trath, that the npparatas for conveying intelligence over the empire, la singn-Jarly complete, Tt appears inadequate and almost ridioalons, yet strange to my it works wall." Tt is a well Known and often quoted fuct, that the yopalso at Taku was known in the native city of Shanghai, before it was ofleinly reported in the foreign sattlenion, and thia is only one instance out of n score that might be easily allo to the same parpose, Of conran it is competent for the objector to say, thnt this event was one of vital political consequence, nud thoroforo might be expected to be circulated with special rapidity; but.the same remark applies to mattersofless moment. Gossip and scraps of Homo details about the foreigner are dispersed with marvellous celerity and surprising accuracy.
To takoun instance; the Abyssinian expedition is discussed by intelligent Chinese with uncommon acuteness. We were surprised, a fow days ago, to hear a Nanking man describe the perils that await the English la their march to Magdala, Ho know the casus belli, the circumstances of the Cousal's ex tivity, the rank, and anmbor of the prisoners, the dificult mature of the country, as thoroughly as if he had been rending'tho Times, the Daily News the Pall Mall Guzetle for the lust months, Ho was also perfectly familiar frith the tne policy of King Meodorss, if ho wishes to perplex and annoy us, "The black man has only to rot seat farther and farther inland, and then oUF troops will faint from hint and lack of water," was the sagacious commentary of the Chinese teacher. Now this fact, though slight, is prog-nant with suggestiveness. It shows that, though we are too proud or too Inay'to Tonrn about the policy or prac-of the Chinese, they are busy in firing information about us and our doings.
The Chinese news course, useful organ la' diffusing information this province; nud the communica tions which huve lately been supplied the English Kmbnasy to the Tsung.li amun, account for much of the al knowledge that is circulated in the North. Our compradores, boys, and teachers, are all meanx of comminicetion, and we do wrong to undervalue the extent and clearness of Native views on Foreign matters. We have drawn Attention to this subject, as we are assured that ouz readers, even if they do not apeak the language, will often, by questioning natives through theme di of ti able pidgeon, ight into many new and strange lights on ourselves fand our proceedings. At all. oveuta our incurious dulness ix rebuked by the eagerness of the Mongols. On matters about wi Westminster Reviewors are placidly content to be ignoraut—the rauk and file of Englishmen, the bumdram classes, may be "pardoned for being ill-informed; bat oven critics may be atruck by the fact that, while thy are mutisticd with imperfect information, stray glances at books of travola, and such surface fakimming in the matter of China, the despised race leave no stone untamed which may Western lat may often be mistaken. literature, and progress.
They may frequently make blunders os absurd ox Bamay. "Yet their blunders may not be the imaginary Celestial in Goldsmit
without instruction. It is proverbially wholesome for us to seo ourselves as others sce us, and proverbially lawful to be taught by an enemy, We have been favoured with a copy of very interesting paper road at the Missionary Quarterly eating of Sep-tomber 18th, by the Rev. Bf. T. Yates. 'The writer is a gentleman very well able to give us interesting and valuable {nformatidn, ax to the manners and eu3- toms of the natives, as well from his familiarity with the' spoken language, from his long and intimate social reations with the Chinese. Tt is a subject of frequent complaint that we are unable to got deep down into the mind of the Mongol, and to tracy hi inticato modes of thought, his peculiar superstitions, his vooret aad tnBuontial Bolo,
religions people, is a question frequently Wholter the Chinese are or are not kei. And, of course, the auawer given varies according to' the querist's conception of the meaning of the word the Hor, Yates em, "The Fengshal and Ancona religious, We hear, on the one hand, tobe the operation of mature on the that they are calm philosophers, from vogetablekingidom) physical and mental whose grand and simple creed the vigour, increase of family, and grout supernaturalists of Europe may learn prosperity in a political wnd_ commer-priceless lessons. Wo are assured, at cial point of view, ete. ete, Hence the another time, that they aro'the slaves, great, partiality of the Chinese fo of Fetish worship and the victims of dwellings that front south, and their superstition and priest-craft. Mr. Yates aversion to those that front north." As gives us u collection of facts which go the genial influence of opting i far to help us to a satisfactory view of to vivify the vegetable Ki the subject. Ho allows, candid tly dead 5 80, in likwsnonner, the, enough, that a porasal of the " Ancic influence of thix spirit of Classics" might lend us to the belief' is supposed to be fell by the that the worship of the dead wns commendable reverence for paronts—is We em not help thinking that to catch the good fan rennin have been placed effect a practical expansion of th teaching of the Gfth Commandmont,—mote is made of this practice than need but ho brings all his store of observa-be. Withoub any elaborate theory of tion to prove that, in fact, the worship a Vivifying Spirit in nature, the Eng-of the dead assumes a far grosser form, lish peasant, chooses the south corner and that it is the principal religion of the churchyard for his grave, if be the Chinese, to which all other systems enn find it avoceupied, The resting serve as adjuncts. Thia stotment is one place visited by sunshine and pleasant of great importance, and tends to clear its is naturally preferred in all coun up a great difficulty which has hither-trios, Men div everywhere, and wy to presented itself to the observer. into cold nnd darkuexs with It Lins porplesed the Foreigner, fresh '0 strive to alleviate shes from the quarrels and bickerings of ghastly circumstances, ever s0 little, Western, Religiouisty, to avo the r0- Seems an universal clusive, It is the presentatives of three xuch opposite result of a natural instinct, not the tyatemsas the Buddhist, the Touist, and working in com; 0 Soggestion of mystic aporait ats nya ut avconbal tre fault which out be may porhups sugges
1g link which th Mr. Yutes's exhaustive ions scots together. For cannot, for a Tauists,"" to quote his own words, rote most of their time to eudwa sions with ourselves, ence between the
ahista of the present day, seeing tha sand the Bud-Feasons are sought for ore really not very dissimilar from those of Western nations. Superstition la prosperity of the Tunists in this do-'The formewhich Drostitated Wir services Wo th same have, in a great degree, Tnnils, but the "piribof it is the same cause, The Coufacian Philosophy, it the four quarters of the Globe, Tf th filial piety; it is how-in borne constantly in mind, we shall seo ever equally true Unt piety of fower attempts to device special theories the present day consists mmninly of de-to recount for foolish practices, and, vrotion to deceased ancestors." stead, a gunetal reference of them all Wo shall not spoil our readers' pleni tothe root idea which underlies nnd sare, by anticipating the able resume saggosts them. Still, the "i of the " Theorios of the Chinese in before wy it of great value, and we re-regard to the dead," which oe iit it is produced in' the form of py the first chapter.
The following passage, however, is too table to phot, instead of being bound Literary or Scioutilic journal, be omitted.
"Pho Chi bel would have a better chance one in the Lot us hope (hat Mr. chest, and one in the will tind ti Ab south, one of tions of Chi and ite position with the produce a book which shall with the corpse, for the North, what Mr. Doolittle and one goos into th uns done for the South of the Middle
strange opinion evygosts thoughts nese for trial and pnihinant." This Kingdom, barring the latter's eccendeep fatoroat. The. pussogoe tat fol tricities,
ow, relative to the view of fature punishment entertained by the Chino, ture not less important; but we should mary mild, and slow to ridicule the reprosontati hae of the tortures of the wicked in auwe are (0 other world, when we rooullect how today not certain Christian teuchors love to amp! the Fiver. fy this hideous theme. The pictures of the Chinese Hell may be coarsely executed and rudely conceived, but they represent the same of the fature life of the wicked which is fe brought. inuily by ears, of which found in the poetry of Dante, in the covery now and then seo some 19 to 30 masterpiece of Michact Angelo, and, together, in compris, passing along the strange to say, in the sermons of Scutch Taboo road either coming from. or going to Takao. Throughout the North of Chi theologians. carts. carrying goods almost invariably The second chapter, which speaks of travel in companies or caravans, for protec-the practices of the people with regard tion aguinst robbers, to the dead, contains less novel, but not The inward mail fro loss interesting mutter; but the Inter Nansing, (now pages devoted to the important. sub-unexpectedly to Ject of the "Fung-shuy" are fall of the agent of the Nuwzing hus adver that or outward "mail for. Shan now facts and wise suggestions, After lose this afternoon, I therefore m admitting the uncertainty and difiof this opportunity to again address you by This season there is, just at this intelligible answer to the it, adonrth of news that would by of what is Pung-shay 5" Ins the south, Such not yet been given, the following curio ous opinions are noticed. Observing that even the animals feel the genial in-Rittiowontyeatenlay about Loran, and fluanee of spring, the Chinese snfer that Jind nearly Tenchod the slone bridge, half there must be influence of a more noble way between this settlement and icutsin character, an influence that I will dono-city, and situated olaso to the river, when minate a spirit of animation, moving Tsav n passenger cart drawn by two mules gently from the South, likoa stratum of ascending the slope on the opposite side of air, and designed for a meu' il the bridge, On reaching the contro of the benefit; the effects of whic, if not bridge, which workmen were engaged. in disturbed by objects or inffuoncos cal-repairing, the mules took fright atthe holes in, or the clothes of the workmen om #ho culated to oppose or divide it, and con-Dridgo and tumbled off it into the river, sequently induce an opposite' influence Aruring the cart with them, The mules from the north, will produce in man wore drowned, but no (something like what has boon observed
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.