BOOKS OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 99, 19 January 1918, Page 11

BOOKS OF THE DAY

China, Old ana' Now. The ever-increasing interest now being taken in Chinese affairs well justified the issue of a second, revised, and enlarged edition of Professor Parker's book on Okina originally published in 1901. Much has occurred in China sinco then which has contributed to changing .the whole social, political, and trade outlook in that country,' and the new edition, entitled "China, Her History, Diplomacy,, and Commerce, from the Earliest Times, to tho Present Day" (John Murray, per Whitcombo and Tombs) is therefore very welcome. . The author, who now occupies the position of Professor of tho Chinese Language at tho Victorian University of Manchester, was for many years a British Consul in China, and'is. credited with, being one of the highest authorities wo have on the subject of .Chinese . history—political and social—and tho . customs as well as the language of the Chinese people. As will bo seen by tho title, the book covers a .wide field, and the author must be complimented alike upon the clarity and continuity of liis historical ■ narrative. Ho deals (Successively with the geography and history of China, with early irafle 'notions, and' trade routes, with tho arrival of Europeans, with tho Chinese connection with Siberia, and after giving an interesting account of the growth.of China's trade in modern times, passes oil to discuss varying forms of government, population, revenue, and taxation, 'lhe Chinese' religion, or religions, the legal system, the causes and. extent of the frequently-recurring rebellions ■ next com© under review, the. two concluding chapters being .devoted to the language 'and literature of : the Chinese, and the. rise, of-the Chinese-Republic'. The work- as-a whole is of character, and should be of the highest possible value to all who would-..under-stand the real, position-of China, not only as the. "greatest of all Asiatic States, but; in her relations, past, present and' futurtj with, the Mropeau Powers and tho Un'ted States. ■ i.«o three last chapters, so the author: explains in his preface, aro practically new. Professor Parker remarks that whereas in-Europe much is heard and written of "revolts and political fiuahbles in China, as a. matter oHact the Eighteen Provinces' a l ®, nofc „ ltt J? uo \. a , * parlous condition after all, the chief Teason for this modicum of happiness boin„ that China is, as it evev has been a nation of small owuks and liaidj cultivators, whose ethical teaching has to two thousand' years past inculcated < spirit of deference and order., a right of self-protection, and a family or detachment from public awl political authority." ~ The author draws attention to tiio fact that the foreign Customs revenue for 1916 was in'sterling the very highest ever collected, and that.the lost Office, ■ ."'owing 'its -success, to French brilliance of strategic management)" is a splendidly p J ing concern. Also, he reminds us that-of tha 15,000 miles of railway lines conceded to foreign companies, twofifths are now actually working, witn ! another fifth ' under. construction .In these railways, Russia, Japan/Britain, and France are financially, interested to tho extent of sixty millions sterling, against seven millions for Germany ana fifteen millions for China After referring to the fact that all through the Far East tho Germans enjoyed complete "freedom of the and that in tho working of their electri,oal, mining, and other engineering enterprises ill. Central China they received "from tho unsuspecting . British banks facilities greater than any German bank would rislc," he argues that after the war a very, different state or affairs must obtain. Ho remarks.. "So long as the tame.and subservient German race remains -under tho baleful Bpell of tho neurotic Prussian braggart aud moral abortion whose blasphemous buffooneries have plunged Western civilisation into a cauldron of boiling passion, making both cowards and bullies even of tho non-Prussiau Army and JNavy officers, it will be quite impossible, so far us the British' colonies are conoerubu, to grant or to allow British backs to Brant to German bunks and traders the generous facilities they enjoyed before the war, and of which tlicy everywhere took a mean advantage, under the cunning 'and unscrupulous wire-pulling oi Potsdam, in order to secure in their own , exclusive hands tho. key-strings of finance, and tlie kw-commoditics of commerce,. and (ultimately) war. Until this contempt of human law and be purged clear, the Germans-official, commercial, or otherwise—should be treated as a lupinum caput, unworthy of trust in or near any isolated fold, and aboyo all not to bo suffered to gam a foothold anywhere in (.he Far Bast, whether a Tsing'-tao or in Indoo-China. With regard to' China's foreign rela- ■ tions, Professor Parker admits that : Japan's recent attitudes have from ] tirao to time been considered harsh towards China, but, ho ssjys: "It must be remembered that Japan also . is now fighting for her future life, and she is as fully determined that China 1 shall never again have a German-com- - manded (for that is what German-trained - means) Army and Navy, as she is resolved • that Germany shall never ugain, if she, ( can prevent it,'set foot in Tsing-tao or any other vantage poiht on the Chinese const. .. . Certainly there may-be some points in tho genoral settlement of disputes on whioh China and Japan have not yet arrived at oomplete agreement. Probably this is beoauso Japan cannot woll declare, and China neither feels nor understands, the importance, in her own interests as woll as in tho interests of pence and civilisation, of extracting tho viper's fangs once for all. As to American suspicions of Japan, theso raw lie dismissed at once if the United States will, only continue, to approach chocs d'opinions in a spirit of reasonableness; and indeed some.of our colonial Dominions may well j-evise their attitude, if only in recognition of Japan's spontaneous assistance in scotching the serpent's head.

Professor Parker's profnee, from which tho above passage-is takeu, was I written in Jlnrcli lust year. Since then any difforencos which may have existed between Japan and the United States have, it is understood, been removed by friendly .negotiation. As for China, she lias como to the conclusion at which tho Professor was anxious sho should arrive, and is now affording tho Allies practical mid valuable assistance in their tusk of "scotching tho 'serpent's lic-nd." In addition to a full index tho utility of Professor Parker's work to-the student is greatly onhanced by. a lengthy glossary, in which much interesting ethnological and geographical information is afforded. A number ot rmtps and diagrams add greatly to tho value of a most comprehensive and extremely useful work. (New Zealand price, 12s. 6d.) LIBER'S NOTE BOOK "The Unborn Millions." The well-known phrase, "the unborn millions," is "eneraliy attributed, at 'least by New Zealanders, to Sir George Grey, and until the other evening I must-confess I bolioved- that Sir-JGeorgo

was the first to use it. Happening, however, to dip into an old and favourite book, Alexander Ireland's 'Book Lover's.Enchiridion," I found tho compiler quoting a specch made by Lord Macaulay at the opening of the Edinburgh Philosophical Institute, in November, 1846, in which the groat historian refers in eloquent terras of praise to English literature. The peroration, which contains tho famous phraso alluded to above, is so fino that I havo copied out a portion of it for tho benefit of my readers;

"I have been requested to invito you to till your glassed to the Literature of Britain; that literature, the brightest, the purest, the most durable of ail tho glories us our country; to that literature, so rich iu precious truth and precious fiction; to that literature whicn boasts of the prince of all poets and of the prince of all philosophers; to that- literature which lias exercised, an influence _ wider than that of our commerce, and mightier than that of our arms; ... to that literature wh'ioh will, in future ages, instruct and delight the unborn millions who will have turned the Australasian and Kaffrarian deserts into cities aJid gardens, to tho Literature of Britain, then! And, wherever British literature 6preads, may it be attended by British virtuo ajid by British freedom. Can it be that Sir- George Grey, attracted by that reference to "tho Australasian and Kaffrarian deserts" a reference n&tuially of special interest to the soldier-statesman, who had a special connection with Australasia and South Africa—treasured this phrase, "tho unborn millions," in his memory, and reproduced it- when the right occasion arrived for its apt employment! Perhaps some ieader of these notes may be able to say when.and where, and in which connection, Sir George Grey made use of this much-quoted phrase.

Lafcadio Hearn on Reading. Some two -years ago, :if. I remember aright, I warmly commended two volumes of lectures on. literature delivered by the late Lafcadio 'Hearn when, acting as Professor of European Literature at the. -University of lokiu.._ To thoße who only know Lafcadio Hearn by his books on Japan and by the delightful volumes ', of' his "Letters, which were edited by- Miss iMizabeth Bisland, these lectures came as a great surprise, for they revealed Hearn to be one of the finest and soundest, and, at tho same time, most usefully informative of writers on England and l'rencn literature that we havo. A third volume of these lectures, entitled Life and Literature," has now appeared m America. In the first chapter Hearn gives his Japanese students soino good advice on reading. What he says on the subject applies, I think, to many English—and New Zealand-people, who imagine they aro readers, when, m the true sense of the Word, thoy are not readers at all. On this subject Hearn. remarks.

Thousands and thousands of 'books aro bought every year, every mouth, I might even Bay every-day, by people who do not read at all. They only think tnnt they read. They buy books just to amuse themselves, "to kill time, as laey call it. In one hour or two their eyes have passed ov«r all the jiir.iv a-nd tiiero is left ,in their minds a vague idea or two about what they have been looking at'; and.this they really btlieve is reading. . .'. No man is realty ablo to read a book who is. not able to express an' original opinion, regarding the contents of a book.

Hearn admits, I notico, that some may think that the; above statement "confuses reading with study. Ho proceeds as follows:—.

You might eay, "Wlien we reail history or philosophy orscienco, then we <lo rend very thoroughly, studying all the meanings and bearings of the text, slowly, and thinking about it. lhis is hard study. But when we read a story or a poem out of class hour, wo rend for amusement. * Amusement and study are two different things." As a matter of fact, every book worth reading ought to be rend in precisely the same way that a scientific book is read—not simply for amusement,; and every book worth readin? should have the, same amount of value in it that a scientific hook hns, though the valu» may be of a totally different kind. For, after all, the good book of fiction or romance or poetry is a scientific work; it has been composed according to the best principles of more than one science, but especially according to the principles of the great scieneo of life, the knowledge of human nature. These books of Hearn's, "Interpretations of Literature" and Lite and Literature," are somewhat expensire, but copies should ne found in every public library worthy the name. A Vision of England. A special and pleasant feature of so much of the really admira-ble verse which is being written at the front is the intense love of England which finds reflection therein. Thus ni a recentlypublished book of verse, "Days of Destiny," by Lord Gorell, who writes under the name of "R- Gorell Barnes, I find a charming poem, 'A Visioirot England " which, to me at least, seems to be an exceptionally beautiful production, alike in the deep omotion fcy which it was evidently inspired and the sweetness of its music. Here are some extracts:

This is the valo of England; everywhere . ... This scene within her loveiy stronghold flowers, ... . , . For all who learn with love to wander Changwl to a scene of mountains, • lakes, and moors . Still it' gives out her spirit unpossessod. , , Beloved, serene; for this sank we to earth, ~ , , Pour out our blood for this and spread our beat, , For Freedom in the home where i'reedom had its birth.

And everywhere that silent home-stead stands, , , Tho patient fiolds around it, changeless still, Whilst one who watched them sleeps in foreign lands That thoy just so unchangingly might The bowls of spring, the barns of autumn's gold, And each-fair season and each ordered mood , Might, in. the great hereafter still do told . . By hands that wrought them tlieer to hearts that understood.

They have a living .beauly; thero is found In every Bold a deeper harmony, The woods are throbbing to a sweeter sound, Chant of Uicir lover's immortality; All that is mortal has teen snatched afar, The rest to 1 God and England; sho appears Celestial-robed, a dream, a hope, a star Shining abovo the gloom, her heritage of tears. The Railway Porter in Literature. ] • In one of those delightful littlo es-j says which ho occasionally contributes to "The Sphere/' Mr. E. V. Lucas gossips pleasantly on what one might quite conceivably, hut as tho essayist proves mistakenly, imagine to bo a. singularly arid subject, -namely) tho ' -railway

porter. Incidentally ho remarks that it is somewhat strango that tho railway porter ocoupiea so small a place in literature, lio says:— Tho comic artists, Leech and ICeono and Du ilaurier, vero very much alivo to his value; but at tho laomont 1 can think of 110 railway porter tutting any real figuro in fiction except one in Dickens's "Itugby Junction," and that tellow, so much on his dignity, upon whom the hero of "Happy 'thoughts" tested—very disastrously—his powers of repartee. The music-hall comedians have been wiser, and have dono much with porters' potentialities. Mr. AVilkio Bard lias been a Welsh porter and Mr. Neil Konyon a Scotch one; and a famous Bong of_tho past was the late George Grossmith's "Muddle Pucl'lle Porter." But literature has been neglectful, and this is odd when you consider the richness of material for tho humorist in these sardonic and deepply experienced men. I can imagine another Mr. Jacobs finding them as useful in their way as his night watchman, and another Mr. Barry Pain exploiting thorn as ho has exploited waiters and bus conductors. If lookers-on see most of the game, then porters should know all; for they are always looking on, and travel can be a very amusing, game. Merely honeymooners. ... But Mr. Lucas has surely forgotten some of Mr. Pett Hide's amusing stories. ' Railway men figure prominently in "Mrs. Raler's Business," and in his 'shorter stories the railway porter is a frequently recurring figure. I rend tho other day that women are to take the place of male porters on somo of the English lines. Perhaps tho novelist will find that the fomale variety of porter him more scope for.character sketches than the old-time "Velveteens," as tho railway porter 'Of my youth was often called.

Disraeli as a "Week-ender." Mr. Arthur Baumann, who a few years ago gave us an interesting monograph on Disraeli, has 1 a pleasant article in the "Fortnightly Review" on the British habit of week-elid.visits to country housos. Disraeli, lie says, Buffered n. mild form of martyrdom on these visits, which ho was often compelled to make for political, and especially "party" purposes. Mr. Baumann says: — Disraeli regarded country-house visits as part ui' his duties as leader of the Tories, hue ho of charac- | ters ili "iothair" say. that life in a country house is. a series of ineais mitigated by tho new dresses of the ladies; and Mrs. Disraeli confided to Sir William Fraser (as Mr. Bucklo remniua us) that ennui and indigestion ottou out short her husband's' stay. There was sometimes another reason for departure, of which happily Mrs. Disraeli was . not aware. There was in some houses a tendency to chaff Lady Beaconsfield/and at the first signs'of . this irreverent habit the statesman • found urgent business which called him awav. Yet Disraeli should not have been ungrateful to country houses, for it was at Eaby, dancing a breakdown on a wet afternoon to amuse the ladies, that "Monty" Corry jumped into the ken of the-great man. According to contemporary accounts, Disraeli did not contribute much to the gaiety of these, house parties; he was generally silent and obviously preoccupied, though he was always glad to listen to the political talk of a big-wig. _Indeed, it was for the purpose of "feeling tho pulse" of loading men that he submitted himself to a round of visits which to an exhausted man, who neither ate nor drank nor smoked, muss have been sufficiently tiresome. Lord Derby, who in his hours of ease liked .racing and sporting talk and chaff, or what is called in modern slang "rotting," was told that the Disraelis were coming to Heron's Court. His countenance fell, and he said crossly: "Ah, now we shall have to talk politics.".

Stray Leaves. Dickensians will be interested to hear that recent English papers announco the appointment of Mr. H. I l '. Dickons, K.C., to tho offico of Common Sergeant of the City of London. Mr. lionvy Fielding Dickens is tho sixth and oniy surviving son of the great novelist. He was called, to' the Bar in 1873, and was for some time Recorder of Deal. His now appointment carries with it very substantial emoluments.; The only survivor of Charles Dickens' 3 three daughters is Mrs. Kate Perugin l . wife of a well-known artist,. Mr. C. E.. Perugini, and herself an accomplished painter. , Tlie long-expected posthumous novel 1 by Theodore Watts Duntoiv "Carniolo/'.is announced for early publication by Mr. John Lane. One of the most interesting books of the English winter iniblishing season should be Swinburne's "Letters,' in two volumes, edited by that indefatigable Swinburnian, Mr. Edmund Gosse. >,1 Methuon's famous edition—the Ardon"—of Shakespeare, tho publication of "which has been spread over so many years, is at last k) bo tomploted by a volume containing tho Sonnets and A Lover's Complaint;" • Dents are publishing for the British \.M.C.A. an anthology of prose and verse entitled "Tho Old Country, a Book of Love and Praise of England." Authors from Camden to Kipling will he represented, the selection having been the work of Mr. Ernest Ithys. the general editor of the famous "Everyman's Library.' When Jio edition is sold out (tho price is 3s. 6d) the publishers hope to pay tIOUU to the Y.M.C.A. Hut Fund. In the last number of Folk Lore, tho journal of i-he Folk Lore Society, Sir James Frazer deals with the public "Cursing of Venizelos," winch took place at Athens in the days before "Dear Tino" was deported, and when German influence was dominant at the Greek capital. The Metropolitan of Athens, a servile and unpatriotic prieat, j solemnly excommunicated a bull s head and cast tho first stone, toing followed by each member of the stoning ana cursing crowd. So, ifc is pointed out by Sir James Frasicr, was David cursed and stoned when Absalom usurped _iis throne. But David preserved his equanimity and came to his own again, just as Venizolos has done, lhe bull s head had its parallel in ;the saonfier.il ritual of ancient Egypt, .and there are hints of the • ceremony- in. anoient Groeco, though 'nothing which exactly corresponds,'.