THE CHINESEENCYCLOPAEDIA.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 292, 17 December 1878, Page 4

THE CHINESEENCYCLOPAEDIA.

A SINGLE WOBK IN 5020 VOLtTMES— • THE CODIFICATION OF A NATIONS LITRBA.TURK. The great Chinese Encyclopaedia recently purchased for the 'British Museum certainly ought to' be a bargain. We cannot do for it what Macaulay once did for aomebody'B book —give its dimensions and its jweight avoirdupois— but 5020 Volumes for £1500 cerf&infy looks cheap. It no doubt would have been a godd deal dearer but for the peculiar circumstances under which it was purchased. Mr Mayere, our Secretary of Legation at Pekin, had, it appears, to carry on negotiations not only wilh the utmost eecrecy as regards the Chinese people, but had carefully to guard theMacts of its being sold to a foreigner from the knowledge even of the vendor himself. The purchase was completed' many months ago, bat (he transportation of this curious literary treasure had to be deferred on account of the selling in of winter, and not until two or three weeks ago wna it received in Eloomebury, where it is now in course of arrangement in the presses of the Chinese Library, under the supervision of Mr Douglas, the Chinese Lihrarian. That it is a great acquisition seems to be very generally' the opinion of all who know anything of Chinese fiffairs, and if it roaliy is what it purports to be, it cannot but be so. It is a work due to the wisdom and energy of Kanjrbe, whom all historians of China extol as the greatest and wisest of the Chinese emperora. He conceived the plan of a great Chinese dictionary, and also set about the really remarkable undertaking now represented by 5020 volumes at the British Museum. He was, it appears, a great admirer of ancient Chinese literature, and was deeply grieved to perceive that exteDsive corruptions were everywhere creeping into the texts of ancient work 9

that were r'6pro3uced. To put a stop to this he determined to gather togelher in one authoritative work the entire mass of Chinese literature from the earliest timrs until his own doy. It waa a va9t design, and was carried out with the ability for which Kang-he was conspicuous. A learned commission was appointed to collate end verify all Chinese works, and the Jesuit missionaries were simultaneously employed in costing a vast fount of copper type. The collection and examination occupied the commission for 40 years, and before it was fully completed the wise old monarch died, leavtfng the completion of his great defeign to Yung-Chin«?, his successor, Who signalled his accession by dismissing the missionaries as a dangerous and traitorous sef — all but a "few, who were retained at Court as indispensable to the carrying on of Kang-he' e Encycloraelia, the printing of the almanac, and so on. He seems to have taken up the gre&t literary scheme with keen interest, and Mr Douglass tells us Ibat it was his hand that wrote the preface to the work when it was at length published. The Commissioners profeßsed to have taken all works from about 1100 b e, to 1700 ad., and it is supposed that the whole Chinese literature of any importance between these dates is to be found embodied in these 5020 volumes. The subjects are classified under six headings, under which are arranged writings relating to the heavens, the earth, mankind, inanimate nature, - philosophy and political economy. Very little Beems to be actually known about the work, even the purchaser, Mr Mayers, having, as it would seem, had to buy the books without having an opportunity of examining them, even though - they do not prove id be all they are supposed io be. The work, however, [is probably all bat juniquo. Tradition affirms that only 100: oopies were originally pribtect; 1 and, ibat the type was broken up. No doubt the majority of the copies have long ago perished, and it cannot but be a 1 matter for congratulation that one has been secured for our great library.