2p, former president' and" chief [judge of the Shanghai Provisional Court; spoke on November 28 at a meeting of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. Dr.
Hawk Pott presided over a lange. gathering who applauded heartily at the conclusion of the lecture. Dr. Wa said:—History of law, like all history, is a seamless web; one hardly knows where to begin. In the history of Chinese law, however, one finds a rather convenient starting point somewhere in the middle of the so-called "Spring and Autumn" period, more specifically in the sixth century, BEC, and this for three reasons. In the first place, legal history pre-Vious to that period is still shrouded in Une mists of uncertainty, inasmuch the authenticity of many books Which bear testimony to the legal Institutions of those remote days, such as Shu King, Chow Li and Li Ki, is still awaing the verdict o€ experts in historical "and textual criticism, "In the second place, it was in the sixth century that the first attempts to promulgate penal Jaws to the people were made. Penal laws had, indeed, existed before then; but' there is sufficient fevidenee to show that they ware ever formally "promulgated, but} were merely instructions given by the kings to their ministers. I do not wish to enter into the question chether promulgation constitutes fan essential element of law. At]
rate, it may be considered as fan' important milestone in. legal History. Lastly, this period is the] most significant for Jegal history, fas in it we find the beginnings of the life-and-death straggle betwoon two opposed types of thinking, one' standing for' a government by cultivation of boni mores, and the ther, for a government by enforeeiment of laws. The whole story of Chinese law is a story of the different phases of the same struggle.
The Publication of Laws According to the Tso Chuan, in the sixth year of the Duke Ch'aou fof Loo, which carresponda to 586, B.C, the State of Ch'ing cast tripods with inscriptions of crimes und Punishments upon them. In. con Sequence of this, Shub-hsiang sent letter of reproach to Tso-< who was then the Prime Minister of Ching. The gist of the letter was that the publication of the Taws to the people would inevitably lead to a decay of anners. 'To quote an interesting sage, "When the people know what the exact laws are, they do not stand in awe of their superiors. 'They will' acquire a contentious spirit, and make their appeal to the express words, hoping peradventure to be successful in their argument They can no longer be managed. 'The letter concludes with a grave warning: "When once the people Know the grounds for contention, they will cast away propriety, and make appeal to your express' provisions. They will even go to the extent of contending about a matter '28 small as the point of an awl or fa knife. Disorderly litigations will multiply and bribes will walk abroad. I am afraid you will in of Ching in your own Again, in the 29th year of the same Duke (512), the Tso Ch'uan contains a similar narrative, this time Confucius raising the protesting voice against the inscription of penal laws on tripods in the state of Tsin, on the ground that the people would rely upon the tripods and cease to pay respect to the men. his warmest personal friends in China. He added that the Soong-[MacMurray Treaty was. something. absolutely new in diplomacy, be-E\B-cause it was not the result nego 15 at all, but the produce of two men sitting down and facing realities and discussing them in a. -|friendly manner. is admiration for Mr. Soong arose because he met things fairly and squarely without attempting to take advantage of the other side. In conclusion Mr.
MacMurray said that he took away swith him not only friendship for the Chinese people but a deep affection for the country. fof rank. This agrees with the view uttered elsewhere by the same Sage, that "The people can be induced to follow but must not be apprised of the Jaw."
The chief tenet in the Confucian system of political philosophy is that laws are not absolutely necessary fo the existence of a State, that the people should and could be governed by means of moral education and by the cultivation of ceremony and etiquette. Litigation was regarded as an abnormal state of affairs, and not as normal incidents of "As a judge," Confucius suid, Lam no better than other persons; but the best thing that could happen would be to eliminate the causes for litigation."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.