Dr. Dudgeon compared Europe and Asi as tu the respective benefits conferred upon civilisation in these continents by Christi-unity and Buddhism respectively. But for Buddhism Christianity might have become the religion of China at the time of the introduction of the former. During the Nestorian period it was Buddhism and Mohammedanism that had prevented it from becoming a power China. It was Buddhism too that obstructed the spread of Christianity in the period of the earlier and later Roman Catholic advents, and Protestantism in China now found no small hindrance from the superstition and idolatry which had been rooted in the Chinese mind by Buddhism, He asked if India to-day was not the better by the want of it, " The noble life of self-sacrifice of Buddha had been eloquently proclaimed, but was not Christ's life one of far more self-sacrifice and how was it that that life had failed to excite an enthusiastic reception by the Chinese? Was the failure not to be found in the teachers of the religion and the absence of that enthusiasm, energy and devotion which characterised the early Buddhist Missionaries? (Que Missionary who replied later said it was a proof of the goodness and beneficence of Buddhism that Christianity had not been able to supplant it.) He thought Buddhism suitable for the rude and uncivilized peoples of Central Asia but not for countries like China and Japan, Buddhism was asoporific, sending asleep intellectually the peuple that embraced it, Intellectually it was without hope or God; it betrayed a weak fondness for the. miraculous it was orally found wanting. The social virtues are negative. What virtues the Chinese have are Confucian; Buddhism has added only idolatry and's false view of the future state.
The statement made by Dr. Dudgeon that the Buddhist system was essentially selfish was strongly contradicted by several speakers, who considered that self-denial was of the very essence of Buddhism, The speaker however maintained that although professing to destroy celt, it was nevertheless system of selfishness." Monasticism was but another form of selfishness, The monks were moreover lazy, ignorant, unfilial, unprofitable, and led an extremely vicious life, breaking many of the most solemn commands of Buddha. He said in addition that Buddhism had produced no literature worthy of the name, had encouraged no arts and sciences, had greatly strengthened the ideas of fingsiui in the minds of the people, and this superstition had been the great obstacle to progress of all sorts, Phe two best tests of x civilisation in any country were the condition of woman and the state of the roads. On both the:
rounds China must be rated very low.
buddhism had left woman where it found it had nothing to depress her in the it had nothing whatever to raise her.
oded to be reborn as men. The Buddhist hell was filled with women undergoing the most excruciating agonies. These tortures could be seen in relief at the monastery of the Azure Cloud near Peking by any one, Buddhisa was said to have prepared the way for Christianity but at any rate very few priests had become Christians, Mr. Charles Denby, Jr., had remarked that the Chinese were indebted to the Buddhists for much of their geographical knowledge, but this speaker replied that they had' made Iamentably little use of the geographical knowledge communicated and for that part might have come from another planet.
The President maintained that Buddhism had improved the Chinese spiritually, morally and intellectually. He had always supported this view. The Chinese philosophical writers scknowledzed their indebtedness to it. He had less to say of the moral influence exerted by Buddhism. He held that Buddhism bad elevated woman, in opposition to the remark of the former speaker. In attempting to prove his contention by showing what woman had done for Buddhism he was informed that the question under discussion was not what women had done for Buddhism but what Buddhism had done for women. The leader of the evening in his reply when Appealing to the chair as showing conclusively that Buddhism had not failed to elevate woman and therefore that it was unnecessary to add further reasons, was sharply pulled up with the remark that the meeting was not at all convinced that the objection had been answered, The question gave rise to much warmth and. play of repartee, and when the vote was afterwards taken on the balance of benefit accruing to China from Buddhism, it was found that two to one voted in the affirmative. Prof. Russell maintained that Buddh only an evil and quoted in proof got nation which had Lecause quite emasculated by the system and that the same result would have followed in China had this unt contained the elements of conservation. A very interesting and profitable evening was spent.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.