A lecture on the "Origin and Antiquiry of the Chinese People" was delivered by Dr. H. Chatley at a meeting of the China Society of Science and Arts at the Royal Asia-tie Society last Fri
lecturer, could be traced back to Chines tutions, the Very ancient age. Some of the earliest records were those of the five mythical emperors, who were credited. with great. agricultural had passed through three great stages in its long history, the first and" savage hunting tag wandering, nomadic stage, Present agricultural and settled stage. It was seen from the dis. ¢overies make of fossil man stone implements that the conditions prevailing in China in anc 'Were no different from the ailing in other parts of the world, 'The lecturer referred to the bones of "The Waste of Yin," and the earliest records of Chinese' writing, dealing principally. with divination' in connexion with hunting and religious practices. Referring to the forms of the characters appearing on these stones, Dr. Chatley said they told us" much of old Chinese religious toms, "including bloody human, id animal sacrifice The earliest traces of " Chines civilization wore found in that dis-following the bed of the Yellow. River, and the discoveries went to show that there dwelt here a more or loss civilized people, surrounded by others who were to all intents and purposes savages. Physically the two peoples wore similar, the great difference between them being that of culture, Some of these savages were still to be found in the more remote parts of Chi The real Chi Chatley, arose in the valley Yellow River about the: year 2500 All the old traditions Chinese would.go fax' to accounting for this atate, of affairs.
Dr. Chatley went on to deal with the various theories concerning the inking up of China with other ni tions of culture and antiquity prior to the late Roman period, and expressed himself as sceptical with regard to most of these. There were, he said, geographical, ethnological and language difficulties, all of which would militate against any possible linking of the sort. The Egyptian theory could be disposed of on two grounds, time and distance, Certainly there was no real connexion between the langu ges. The Babalonian theory much more popularly accepted, but he was of opinion that difficulties to those obtaining with the theories belied its prob something alone, pure-Chinese and with Chinese origins Some of the more outstanding coi tar explained by the eldences of foreign and Chinese cul-
brought to, bear 4 comparatively recent years, and] could not be said to fundamentally, affect Chinese culture as such, The lecturer concluded with some reference to the much debated point as.to whether culture could arise in many places, or whether it snust have its mainspring from one definite source. He was against the latter, theory, contending that culture could have its birth in any part of the world. He understood civilization to mean the organized ce-operation of large groups of people for their common Welfare. Cer-fain. con: produce a and he suggested that nothing more conducive to this end than the plains and large rivers. The giyilizations of Northern India, mesopotamia, Mexico and Chi were all traceable to, this cause, an hie suggester! that the development of the. Chinese civilization might also be attributed to it, To combat the droughts and, floods, consequent} on these *SoHaiivis) ta¥ people ha: SOE a aakth8 oise asco to develop: an elaborate: organization to cope with affairs, or perish, and thus it was that all these ancient civilizations he had mentioned were associated with schemes for irrigation and hydraulic engineering works.
From this point the lecturer went on to point a moral to the Chinese people and make sug-Jgestions for improvements in the present irrigation systems.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.