Kiangsu's capital has recently had pleasure of a visit from Dr. Henry M. Woods of the Southern Presbyterian Mission, who wished to obtain the assistance of some of the ablest of, the native wholers in the Inst revision of his commentary on the: Analects which has just been sent to' the printer. A illenninm ago the philosopher Chafutsze fixed the meaning of the classic text irrevocably; and operations of scholars have memorized his annotations. Thirty-one years ago the first Protestant Missionary Conference in Shanghai requested Dr. Ernest Faber to prepare Christian ornmentary on the Chinese Classics, In its stead he wrote a valaable resume! of the teachings of Confucius. It was reserved for the Sage of North Kiangsa in his peaceful residence in the Triple City—alone with his family—for score of years to meditate quietly on Confacins and give to "all within the four seas" the resalt of his patient research, The author is profound thinker and brings the vast stores of Western led and theology to illustrate the teachings literature, history, philosophy, science
of the Chinese master. Ench chapter for paragraph has its theme. Then follows a brief verbal explication of the text. After that the comment, short, distinct, divested of chufucian mysticism, and clear as the sunlight. A distinguished native scholar pronounces the book ' Chinese withen The Western commentator is fearless in stating the trath—especially when the teachings of Confucius deal with religion—but his pen is always dipped in courtesy.
Of. course the book will be used in mission schools and a revival of sinological scholarship throughout the land will surely follow i icati for its issue is auspicious. The "new learning" tendency to render the ancient books insipid and here comes a new, easy volume to fill the classic gap. The stereotype plates of the old school are broken to pieces and, in " figure, the new is printed from moveable type. Hundreds of thousands of the literati must read the book in order to be up-to-date. The issue of the new commentaries on the Great Learning and the Doctrine of the Mean will follow next year, and every friend of China will express the hope that the author may live to complete the series of Woods' Chinese Classics in Chinese.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.