14th Oct, Marx than a century and a half. ago the rending public of our English tongue were taught the wholesome lesson that "The proper study of mankind is Man." We must not pride ourselves that even yet the lesson has been taken entirely to heart. But we may fairly congratulate ourselves on the strides that have been made in the direction Pope would have had us go. For is it not a-fact that the tendency of modern study toward the practical rather than to the impractical; to the physical, not to the metaphysical; to the natural rather than to the supernatural So far as our knowledge of the Chinese goes most of us are content with a very superficial knowledge of the business capacity or the political weight of those with whom we come in contact. Their social life is as sealed a book to us, except in the pages of Doolittle, as ours is to them. Few, except the missionaries, ever go below: the surface, and of the aren which that presents. we "in. Shanghai now only the portions bounded by the office and the Bubbling Well Road. To see vative life in its native state so far as our settlements will allow, we must seek for the lanes and alleys where the advent of a foreigner is an event to be noticed. Once there the first. thing that impresses itself on the mind is the marvellous fertility of the people. {Children everywhere. Babies at the breast, little toddlers and, sturdy urchins meet us by the score, Every house seems to send forth its contingent of lads and lasses, chubby, grubby, and glad. For there seems to be a wonderful of good temper amongst these lower orders of Chinese. Que sees quarrels now and then, usually in the neighbourhood of wine shops, but amongst the private residences (save
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.