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CHINA.

ADDRESS BY THE CHINESE CONSUL. i At the anniversary of the MethccF- : ist Church in the Town Hall, last ' evening, the Hon. Mr Yung-Liang Hwang, Chinese Consul for New Zealand, was present and during the evening delivered a most interesting; and instructive address on China, the remarks of which were listened to with the keenest appreciation by tfbe audience. Rev. C. E. Porter introduced the speaker in a[few well chosen words,, and asked for a patient hearing for Mr Hwans. On rising the Chinese Consul was warmly applauded. After expressing the enjoyment he had derived from J the evening's proceedings, the | speaker made reference to the carrying of No-license in Masterton. In China they were a grand work of reform in prohibiting opium, smoking, and it was expected that its abolishment would be complete in about seven years. He came from a country that was one of the oldest nations on the earth, and whose civilisation was entirely different to ours. China was an enormous country with millions of a population, and the climate was good. Their territory was productive and the mineral wealth, that of coal particularly, was very great. In fact experts computed that their coalfields were capable of producing; enough coal to last the whole of the I world tor one thousand years. The Chinese were an industrious race, and were always most willing to work"when there was work to do. This characteristic of industry waa to be noticed in every phase of life throughout their 4uo millions of population. It was their industry that led them to try their fortunes in other countries, for they were m people whose powers of endurance were great, and they were not afraid of hard work. They could live under any climatic condition, and were alle the hardest possible work under the sun. The trait of obedience in the Chinese was next dealt with by the speaker, who instanced the obedience of the children towards their parents, obedience of the subjects towards their rulers, and also of juniors to wards their seniors. . It was this spirit of obedience that had kept their nation extant for so many thousand years. In support of this he instanced the wonderful willingness on the part of the people to assist in the abolition of opium Hmoking. In''business their people were particularly fair, and honest in their transactions, and a verbal arrangexent between two parties was equal to a written contract. The fact that most of the. Japanese banks employed uhinese clerks in their institutions was a testimony to their business ability. He did not mean by this that they were more faithful than the Japanese, but it only showed that the Chinese were capable, and worthy of positions of responsibility, in regard to the fair sex the speaker said that in China young men were r.ever entertained by them. A male visitor was received by the husband. Also it was not the custom for the women to go out into the street?, and when dining the gentlemen occupied, one room and the ladies another. Marriages were arranged by the parents, and young couples never met before marriage. Divorces were unknown in China—in fact it waa considered almost too shameful a subject to mention. The question of polygamy was receiving the attention of the authorities, and it was possible that it would be abolished in the course of time. The speaker explained at length the methods adopted by the Chinese to make themselvesknown and acquainted with Western ideas. The impression that when China "woke up" they would become a dangerous nation was quite erroneous. They were a peaceful race, their doctrine was peace, and it was nut their intention to become a "yellow peril." Referring to religion, the speaker said the Chinese _ were a religious nation. He was a . Christian believer, and he thought their old forms of religion were not sufficient. To his mind the meaning of religion was the thought of God to man and the thought of man to God. He dealt at length with Buddhism, Mohammedanism and Confucianism. The latter religion, he thought, would never be given up, because it was a school of philosophy, and from it had sprung their best literature and teachings. On the other hand, Buddhism was not complete, and it was possible it would not live. He thought it was the duty of Western nations to exercise their good influence for the benefit of the Chinese in religious matters. His four months' residence in New Zealand had taught him many things. Racial prejudice was a mistake, and he was confident that it would cease to exist in a very short time. The speaker, in conclusion, said he waa pleased to put his views before those \ present, and thanked them for the patient hearing he had received. On the motion of tho Chairman, Mr Hwang was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for his address.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WAG19090702.2.41

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9532, 2 July 1909, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
819

CHINA. Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9532, 2 July 1909, Page 5

CHINA. Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9532, 2 July 1909, Page 5

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