Tenghsien, Sept. 5.
Tenghsien being in the belt of country influenced by Confucius and Mencius is still conservative and stands for old traditions, so for"this reason not easily influenced by new ideas or customs. Bobbed hair and the unbound foot for women are still discountenanced except by the more progressive few.
Possibly for this reason the New Life Movement is just reaching this part of China, China can outrival the West in parades and demonstrations so the New Life programme as exhibited to-day has attracted thousands; bands of soldiers; the scouts with' their own flag and band and schools, from primary to high school, both girls and young men. This demonstration and the speeches will be followed by two days of theatricals, which seems necessary to induce a crowd to attend, In the last year the soldiers have prepared for themselves a plot for military manceuvres, and, this being outside the city, and spacious, most public gatherings meet there' when numbers are expected. The city gates are decorated" with huge paintings, demonstrating with the use of pictures the evil effects of opium particular, but also. wine and cigarettes. Some of these are truly oriental and most realistic in their details. We rejoice in this movement but we are reminded of John Erskine's saying that to develop culture or morals one must not neglect the spiritual man, The old time teacher and scholar of China had the bowed back as 2 kind of "trade mark" and it is still Gieult to persuade students {0 sit erect and hold their chins up. Now that their commander-in-chiot quests it, the task is easier,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.