the soul of the far east-第6节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


lly　a　father；　whereas　a　girl；　if　she　marry　at　all；　is　bound　to　marry　out　of　her　own　family　into　another；　and　is　relatively　lost。　　The　full　force　of　the　deprivation　is；　however；　to　some　degree　tempered　by　the　almost　infinite　possibilities　of　adoption。　　Daughters　are；　therefore；　not　utterly　unmitigable　evils。

From　the　privacy　of　the　domestic　circle；　the　infant's　entrance　into　public　life　is　performed　pick…a…back。　　Strapped　securely　to　the　shoulders　of　a　slightly　older　sister；　out　he　goes；　consigned　to　the　tender　mercies　of　a　being　who　is　scarcely　more　than　a　baby　herself。　The　diminutiveness　of　the　nurse…perambulators　is　the　most　surprising　part　of　the　performance。　　The　tiniest　of　tots　may　be　seen　thus　toddling　round　with　burdens　half　their　own　size。　　Like　the　dot　upon　the　little　i；　the　baby's　head　seems　a　natural　part　of　their　childish　ego。

An　economy　of　the　kind　in　the　matter　of　nurses　is　highly　suggestive。　That　it　should　be　practicable　thus　to　entrust　one　infant　to　another　proves　the　precociousness　of　children。　　But　this　surprising　maturity　of　the　young　implies　by　a　law　too　well　known　to　need　explanation；　the　consequent　immaturity　of　the　race。　　That　which　has　less　to　grow　up　to；　naturally　grows　up　to　its　limit　sooner。　　It　may　even　be　questioned　whether　it　does　not　do　so　with　the　more　haste；　on　the　same　principle　that　a　runner　who　has　less　distance　to　travel　not　only　accomplishes　his　course　quicker；　but　moves　with　relatively　greater　speed；　or　as　a　small　planet　grows　old　not　simply　sooner；　but　comparatively　faster　than　a　larger　one。　　Jupiter　is　still　in　his　fiery　youth；　while　the　moon　is　senile　in　decrepid　old　age；　and　yet　his　separate　existence　began　long　before　hers。　　Either　hypothesis　will　explain　the　abnormally　early　development　of　the　Chinese　race；　and　its　subsequent　career　of　inactivity。　　Meanwhile　the　youthful　nurse；　in　blissful　ignorance　of　the　evidence　which　her　present　precocity　affords　against　her　future　possibilities；　pursues　her　sports　with　intermittent　attention　to　her　charge；　whose　poor　little　head　lolls　about；　now　on　one　side　and　now　on　the　other；　in　a　most　distressingly　loose　manner；　an　uninterested　spectator　of　the　proceedings。

As　soon　as　the　babe　gets　a　trifle　bigger　he　ceases　to　be　ministered　to　and　begins　his　long　course　of　ministering　to　others。　　His　home　life　consists　of　attentive　subordination。　　The　relation　his　obedience　bears　to　that　of　children　elsewhere　is　paralleled　perhaps　sufficiently　by　the　comparative　importance　attached　to　precepts　on　the　subject　in　the　respective　moral　codes。　　The　commandment　〃honor　thy　father〃　forms　a　tithe　of　the　Mosaic　law；　while　the　same　injunction　constitutes　at　least　one　half　of　the　Confucian　precepts。　To　the　Chinese　child　all　the　parental　commands　are　not　simply　law　to　the　letter；　they　are　to　be　anticipated　in　the　spirit。　　To　do　what　he　is　told　is　but　the　merest　fraction　of　his　duty；　theoretically　his　only　thought　is　how　to　serve　his　sire。　　The　pious　Aeneas　escaping　from　Troy　exemplifies　his　conduct　when　it　comes　to　a　question　of　domestic　precedence；whose　first　care；　it　will　be　remembered；　was　for　his　father；　his　next　for　his　son；　and　his　last　for　his　wife。　He　lost　his　wife；　it　may　be　noted　in　passing。　　Filial　piety　is　the　greatest　of　Chinese　virtues。　　Indeed；　an　undutiful　son　is　a　monstrosity；　a　case　of　moral　deformity。　　It　could　now　hardly　be　otherwise。　　For　a　father　sums　up　in　propria　persona　a　whole　pedigree　of　patriarchs　whose　superimposed　weight　of　authority　is　practically　divine。　　This　condition　of　servitude　is　never　outgrown　by　the　individual；　as　it　has　never　been　outgrown　by　the　race。

Our　boy　now　begins　to　go　to　school；　to　a　day　school；　it　need　hardly　be　specified；　for　a　boarding　school　would　be　entirely　out　of　keeping　with　the　family　life。　　Here；　he　is　given　the　〃Trimetrical　Classic〃　to　start　on；　that　he　may　learn　the　characters　by　heart；　picking　up　incidentally　what　ideas　he　may。　　This　book　is　followed　by　the　〃Century　of　Surnames；〃　a　catalogue　of　all　the　clan　names　in　China；　studied　like　the　last　for　the　sake　of　the　characters；　although　the　suggestion　of　the　importance　of　the　family　contained　in　it　is　probably　not　lost　upon　his　youthful　mind。　　Next　comes　the　〃Thousand　Character　Classic；〃　a　wonderful　epic　as　a　feat　of　skill；　for　of　the　thousand　characters　which　it　contains　not　a　single　one　is　repeated；　an　absence　of　tautology　not　properly　appreciated　by　the　enforced　reader。　　Reminiscences　of　our　own　school　days　vividly　depict　the　consequent　disgust；　instead　of　admiration；　of　the　boy。　　Three　more　books　succeed　these　first　volumes；　differing　from　one　another　in　form；　but　in　substance　singularly　alike；　treating；　as　they　all　do；　of　history　and　ethics　combined。　　For　tales　and　morals　are　inseparably　associated　by　pious　antiquity。　Indeed；　the　past　would　seem　to　have　lived　with　special　reference　to　the　edification　of　the　future。　　Chinamen　were　abnormally　virtuous　in　those　golden　days；　barring　the　few　unfortunates　whom　fate　needed　as　warning　examples　of　depravity　for　succeeding　ages。　　Except　for　the　fact　that　instruction　as　to　a　future　life　forms　no　part　of　the　curriculum；　a　far…eastern　education　may　be　said　to　consist　of　Sunday…school　every　day　in　the　week。　　For　no　occasion　is　lost　by　the　erudite　authors；　even　in　the　most　worldly　portions　of　their　work；　for　preaching　a　slight　homily　on　the　subject　in　hand。　　The　dictum　of　Dionysius　of　Halicarnassus　that　〃history　is　philosophy　teaching　by　example〃　would　seem　there　to　have　become　modified　into　〃history　is　filiosophy　teaching　by　example。〃　For　in　the　instructive　anecdotes　every　other　form　of　merit　is　depicted　as　second　to　that　of　being　a　dutiful　son。　　To　the　practice　of　that　supreme　virtue　all　other　considerations　are　sacrificed。　　The　student's　aim　is　thus　kept　single。　　At　every　turn　of　the　leaves；　paragons　of　filial　piety　shame　the　youthful　reader　to　the　pitch　of　emulation　by　the　epitaphic　records　of　their　deeds。　　Portraits　of　the　past；　possibly　colored；　present　that　estimable　trait　in　so　exalted　a　type　that　to　any　less　filial　a　people　they　would　simply　deter　competition。　　Yet　the　boy　implicitly　believes　and　no　doubt　resolves　to　rival　what　he　reads。　　A　specimen　or　two　will　amply　suggest　the　rest。　　In　one　tale　the　hero　is　held　up　to　the　unqualified　admiration　of　posterity　for　having　starved　to　death　his　son；　in　an　extreme　case　of　family　destitution；　for　the　sake　of　providing　food　enough　for　his　aged　father。　　In　another　he　unhesitatingly　divorces　his　wife　for　having　dared　to　poke　fun；　in　the　shape　of　bodkins；　at　some　wooden　effigies　of　his　parents　which　he　had　had　set　up　in　the　house　for　daily　devotional　contemplation。　　Finally　another　paragon　actually　sells　himself　in　perpetuity　as　a　slave　that　he　may　thus　procure　the　wherewithal　to　bury　with　due　honor　his　anything　but　worthy　progenitor；　who　had　first　cheated　his　neighbors　and　then　squandered　his　ill…gotten　gains　in　riotous　living。　Of　these　tales；　as　of　certain　questionable　novels　in　a　slightly　different　line；　the　eventual　moral　is　considered　quite　competent　to　redeem　the　general　immorality　of　the　plot。　　

Along　such　a　curriculum　the　youthful　Chinaman　is　made　to　run。　A　very　similar　system　prevails　in　Japan；　the　difference　between　the　two　consisting　in　quantity　rather　than　quality。　　The　books　in　the　two　cases　are　much　the　same；　and　the　amount　read　differs　surprisingly　little　when　we　consider　that　in　the　one　case　it　is　his　own　classics　the　student　is　reading；　in　the　other　the　Chinaman's。

If　he　belong　to　the　middle　class；　as　soon　as　his　schooling　is　over　he　is　set　to　learn　his　father's　trade。　　To　undertake　to　learn　any　trade　but　his　father's　would　strike　the　family　as　simply　preposterous。　Why　should　he　adopt　another　line　of　business？　　And；　if　he　did；　what　other　business　should　he　adopt？　　Is　his　father's　occupation　not　already　there；　a　part　of　the　existing　order　of　things；　and　is　he　not　the　son　of　his　father　and　heir　therefore　of　the　paternal　skill？　Not　that　such　inherited　aptness　is　recognized　scientifically；　it　is　simply　taken　for　granted　instinctively。　　It　is　but　a　halfhearted　intuition；　however；　for　the　possibility　of　an　inheritance　from　the　mother's　side　is　as　out　of　the　question　as　if　her　severance　from　her　own　family　had　an　ex　post　facto　effect。　　As　for　his　individual　predilection　in　the　matter；　nature　has　considerately　conformed　to　custom　by　giving　him　none。　　He　becomes　a　cabinet…maker；　for　instance；　because　his　ancestors　always　have　been　cabinet…makers。　　He　inherits　the　family　business　as　a　necessary　part　of　the　family　name。　　He　is　born　to　his　trade；　not　naturally　selected　because　of　his　fitness　for　it。　But　he　usually　is　amply　qualified　for　the　position；　for　generations　of　practice；　if　only　on　one　side　of　the　house；　accumulate　a　vast　deal　of　technical　skill。　　The　result　of　this　system　of　clan　guilds　in　all　branches　of　industry　is　sufficiently　noticeable。　　The　almost　infinite　superiority　of　Japanese　artisans　over　their　European　fellow…craftsmen　is　world…known。　　On　the　other　hand　the　tendency　of　the　occupation　in　the　abstract　to　swallow　up　the　individual　in　the　concrete　is　as　evident　to　theory　as　it　is　patent　in　practice。　　Eventually　the　man　is　lost　in　the　manner。　　The　very　names　of　trades　express　the　fact。　　The　Japanese　word　for　cabinet…maker；　for　example；　means　li