The City of Peking, China.

389

1900) holds the reins of power in Peking. till the close of the seventeenth century, The Catholics agreed to the transfer, but and for a hundred and twenty-five years, not till they had secured a satisfactory loca- or till the year of Yung Cheng, A. D. 1724, tion and a bonus of $300,000. Finally, to ex- they had magnificent opportunities to spread pedite their movements, indeed, to persuade the faith. They used these opportunities them to keep their agreements, an extra largely for ecclesiastical and political pur$20,000 had to be given. There may be poses and brought on themselves their desome historical reasons for the empress- served expulsion, in 1724, under the third emdowager's determined hatred of foreigners. peror of the Manchu dynasty. Their rights and privileges were restored at the beginning of the new era, A. D. 1840, but they have never recovered their former influence and prestige.

THE FORBIDDEN CITY.

Inside the imperial city, surrounded by a

wide moat filled with clear water from springs at the western hills, is the forbidden city, the residence of the emperor, his concubines, and the 2,000 eunuchs who wait upon them. The city is divided into two parts. The part to the north includes the coal hill, or prospect hill, said to be filled with coal for use in case of a siege. It is an artificial hill, surmounted by cool pavilions, and adorned with trees, on one of which the last emperor of the Ming hung himself after stabbing to death his only daughter. This city is about one and one half miles in circumference, and is carefully guarded by innumerable soldiers who lounge and gamble in the guard houses.

A mission of the Greek Church has been

in Peking over two hundred years, but is not allowed to propagate the faith, being tolerated here for the ostensible purpose of caring for the spiritual interests of the descendants of Russian prisoners taken by the Chinese on the fall of Albazin, on the Amoor River. By natural growth this mission has now a large following and a fine property. During the last century the Russian government was allowed the residence of a minister in Peking on the condition of the kotou, or prostration in presence of the emperor. No other government has ever granted this degrading reverence, and they waited till 1887, when the vexed" audience question" was settled, and foreign ministers were allowed to stand on presenting their credentials to the emperor.

The first American minister to reach

The eunuchs wait upon the emperor, care for his kitchen, his stables, his storehouses, carry his person when he wishes an airing in his sedan chair, or lead his horse when he rides, row his boat in summer, and in winter pull him on the ice, comfortably pro- Peking (1859) was Mr. Ward, but he retected in his beautiful, silk-lined sleigh car-mained only a brief time and did not accomriage, made in Berlin and costing $5,000. plish the object of his visit. Subsequent He has a miniature railroad, presented by ministers have been ex-Governor Lowe, Mr. the French government, two miles long, Avery, George F. Seward, J. B. Young, and his palace is (at least was) lighted by J. B. Angell, LL.D., Colonel Charles Denby, electricity. His audiences with his minister and Major E. H. Conger, the present inof state are held before daylight each morncumbent. Dr. S. Wells Williams was the ing, and old and feeble officials are obliged to be stirring by two o'clock in the morning, and however dark and muddy the roads, make their way to the cold hall in which they are received.

FOREIGN INTERCOURSE.

honored secretary of legation for many that he was not made minister. The allied years, and many people were disappointed forces (English, 10,000 men; French, 7,000 men) occupied Peking in 1860, after taking the Taku forts and fighting their way northward step by step for a hundred and forty miles. From that war followed the opening of 19 treaty ports, and Peking became the residence of the ministers of foreign powers, though not open for business with foreigners.

The first intelligent account given of Peking to Western nations was written by Marco Polo, the Venetian traveler and friend of Kublai Khan, who reached Peking (Cambalue) in A. D. 1280, and remained seventeen years. The Nestorians were here at that time, and he mentions two churches of that order. No traces of them can be discovered at the present time. Dr. Lockhart, of the London Mission, folRoman Catholic missions did not arrive lowed the troops to Peking and did some

MISSION WORK IN PEKING.

390

The Ancestral Tablet in China.

medical work for the Chinese, but it was perous. Besides these four missions there not till 1864 that regular work was inaugu- are operating in Peking the Church of rated, and then almost simultaneously by England Mission, Bishop Scott in charge, three organizations, the London Society, the an independent mission in charge of Miss American Presbyterians, and the American Douw, of Albany, N.Y., and the Russian Board. The pioneers of these missions Ecclesiastical Mission. There are also were, respectively, Joseph Edkins, D.D., four large Roman Catholic churches, with a W. A. P. Martin, D.D., and Henry Blodget, large following, doubtless larger than that D.D. The American Methodist Mission be- of all the others put together.-W. S. Ament, gan work in 1869 and has been very pros- D.D., in Missionary Herald.

THE

THE ANCESTRAL TABLET IN CHINA.

HE use of the ancestral tablet in China' two. These two upright pieces are carefully is universal. It is found in the palace of fitted into each other, so that they seem to the emperor, in the mansions of the rich form one whole and stand as one tablet, and great, and in the hovels of the poor. though divided in the middle. Temples or halls are erected, in which separate clans treasure up the ancestral tablets of their several families, and pay them the accustomed worship. The readers of the New York Observer may not be without interest in a few words relating to the history, form, consecration, and uses of this singular device of the Chinese, the ancestral tablet.

The origin of the tablet and the time of its first use are buried in obscurity. No mention of the ancestral tablet is made in the Book of History, the earliest authentic record of Chinese affairs, or in the Book of Odes, which also belongs to the earliest times. Yet the commentators upon the speech at Kan, B. C. 2194, quote Confucius as saying that the emperor, in his tours of inspection, took with him the tablets of his ancestors, and they infer that at this time also the tablets were taken by King Chi in his war against the Prince of Hu. If this be correct, the ancestral tablets must have been in use from the beginnings of Chinese history. Traditionary accounts assign it to the latter part of the Chow dynasty, B. C. 1122 to 255, or to the Han dynasty, B. C. 206 to A. D. 25. Thus this custom of worshiping the ancestral tablet is of high antiquity, and pervades the history of China.

The inscription in front, before which the worshiper prostrates himself, gives the name, the age, and the honors of the deceased, and lower down on the side, the name of the son who erects the tablet, and who is the chief worshiper. The honors referred to are public offices conferred by the imperial government. It is hardly necessary to state that in most cases no such honors were received, and the empty titles are only a pleasing illusion to the filial descendants. The important words are the last three, chih shên wei, which end the inscription. These words have been rendered, "the seat or throne of the spirit" of the deceased ancestor.

The inscription on the inside, which is invisible, and forms as it were the adytum of the tablet, gives the surname, name, style, and order of birth among the children of the family of the deceased, with the additional words chih shên chu, which may be rendered, “the lodging place of the spirit" of the deceased, or "the place in which his spirit bears rule, or exercises lordship.”

The writing of these inscriptions is regarded as a matter of great dignity and importance. A member of the National Academy is invited to perform this office, or, in case of the common people, a literary gradAs to the form and size of the ancestral uate of the second degree, if possible, so tablet there are differences in the same that the act may seem to be invested with locality, as there are also in regard to the imperial authority. When written, howwood of which it is made, and the costliness ever, there are two of the characters, chu of its adornment. The height varies from on the inside, and wei on the outside, of the eight to fifteen inches, and the width from tablet, which are purposely left unfinished, two to four inches. It consists of three being without the final dot on the top of pieces of wood, two of which are upright, each. To impose these dots is the great while the third serves as a pedestal for the ceremony in the consecration of the tablet,

The Ancestral Tablet in China.

which is thus vivified and made an object of worship.

391

At the appointed time, all being now ready, the chief mourner, the eldest son, A mandarin of higher grade is invited to steps out into the hall and kneels before the be present on the day of the funeral rites to mandarin, making three prostrations to the perform this important act. He comes as ground, thus inviting him to come forward invested with the authority of the emperor, and perform the ceremony. The master of who being the "Son of Heaven," and bear- ceremonies now cries out with a loud voice, ing rule by the decree of heaven, is at the "Will the distinguished guest please occupy head of the national worship, and directs the seat of honor?" The mandarin then what gods are to be and what gods are not advances and takes his place between the to be worshiped, who also deifies and ap-chair and the table, the four mandarins of

lesser grade also taking their places, two on one side, two on the other side of the table, the five all in a standing posture.

The master of ceremonies then cries out, "Bring out the tablet and place it on the table." Immediately the chief mourner brings forward the casket containing the tablet, holding it in both hands reverentially, and presents it in a kneeling posture to the assistant magistrates, one of whom receives and places it on the table. The master of ceremonies again cries out," Open the casket." The box containing the tablet is then opened. "Let the tablet be taken from the casket." The tablet is taken out and laid upon the table. He cries again, "Separate parts of the tablet." The two parts are now separated and laid before the chief mag

er rank are invited to be present to
assist in the ceremony. These all are re-
ceived in an outer court or hall, a little
removed from the apartment in which is the
coffin. In this room a small vacant space
in front of the coffin is reserved for the wor-istrate, who is to impose the dot.
ship of the dead. Beyond this space is
placed a square table, covered with a red
cloth, upon which are two pencils and two
inkstones, the one with red and the other
with black ink. A chair covered with a red
cloth is placed before the table for the use
of the mandarin who is to consecrate the
tablet.

The supreme moment having now arrived, the master of ceremonies cries out, "Hand up the vermilion pencil." One of the subordinates then hands the pencil to his chief. The master of ceremonies, now addressing himself to the chief, says, "May it please our distinguished guest to turn toward the east, and receive the breath of

The Ancestral Tablet in China.

life, shêng chi." The chief magistrate, with the vermilion pencil in his hand, then turns toward the east, as in obedience to the command, and after this emits a slight breath upon the tip of his pencil. The master of ceremonies now cries out, "Impose mourning. When these are ended the tabthe red dot." The chief magistrate, still standing with his pencil in his hand, first bows to the four inferior magistrates standing by the sides of the table, as if he were unworthy to perform this act, and then imposes the red dot, first on the inside of the tablet, to complete the character chu, lord, and afterward upon the outside, to complete the character wei, seat or throne. The red dots are thus imposed.