nese themselves call elegant and refined in manners, Europeans might, and often do, pronounce coarse and barbarous. Hence, as we are compelled to infer the quality of the soil from its productions, and the inclination of the earth's surface from the course of the rivers; so, in like manner, we must derive our ideas of the character of the inhabitants from their institutions, civil, social, and religious, and froin the productions of their hands and their genius. From the foreigners now resident in Chekiáng we hope to receive valuable information, as well regarding the character and manners of the people, as respecting the productions of their soil and their manufactories. Our pages will always be open for original communications; and faithful descriptions, especially of men and things in those parts hitherto but little frequented by foreigners, will surely be acceptable to all our readers. ART. VII. Portrait of Fuhi, the first of the Five Sovereigns, whose reign commenced two thousand eight hundred and fiftytwo years before Christ. Yúcháu and IMMEDIATELY after the Three Sovereigns, whose portraits were given in the last number, some authors introduce two other monarchs, whose names are Sui-jin. Next in the series, all agree in placing Fuhí, or, with the name more fully written, Tái Háu Fuhi, the Great Illustrious Fuhí, who was born in the province of Shensí. He was renowned for his virtues; and hence the appellations Great and Illustrious were given to him. He built his capital in the province of Honán, in the department of Káifung, its modern capital. And it is there, on the banks of the Yellow river, that the Chinese look for the site of that first settlement, from whence have sprung all the successive dynasties and all the countless multitudes of the black-haired people, which, during a period of forty-seven centuries, have ruled and cultivated the hills and vallies of the celestial empire. But if the time of Fuhí's appearance on earth be correctly indicated, and the commencement of his reign be placed 2852 B. C., he must of course have lived anterior to the deluge of Noah; and consequently at a period when there may have been no Hwáng hò to overflow its banks, and distress the peaceful inhabitants of the land. The portrait represents him in a rude state, but yet engaged, with pencil in hand, pondering over the eight diagrams, of which the Chinese write and talk much, and know little. Grave historians consider Fuhí as the founder of their empire. They say that at the commencement of our race, men differed not from the brutes. They were rude in manners, without arts and sciences, and made no provision for life. When hungry, they sought food; when satiated, they abandoned that which they had not eaten. They devoured their meat raw and undressed, drank blood, and wore the skins of wild beasts. In this uncultivated state was the human race, when Fuhi appeared. He made nets to catch fish, and snares to entrap wild beasts and birds, to supply the wants of the people. He taught them how to feed domestic animals, and those required for sacrificial purposes. So great were his virtues, that he comprehended all things, understanding their qualities, their powers, and the ends for which they were best fitted. When he first drew the eight diagrams, each had three strokes. He increased their whole number to sixty-four. From this commencement, he proceeded to invent written characters, which were substituted for knotted cords. The sources from whence the language was formed, were the six following: 諧 characters resembling objects or things; characters pointing out objects; those formed by combining ideas; by inverting their significations; and by uniting sound to the object. We quote these six.classes from the History Made Easy, and will add an example or two under each, as we there find them givers. 1. The sun and the moon are denoted by the following characters, which in their original shape were thought to resemble those two objects: ji, the sun; yue, the moon. 2. This includes characters that have two meanings, one literal and the other borrowed; thus ling, an ensign of authority, is used to denote the exercise of authority, i. e. to rule. 3. Those under this class point out their meaning, by their form &c.; they say, Ejin tsái yi sháng, wei sháng, the character man (八) standing (在) above (上) one (-), makes () the character sháng (E) above, or to ascend. 4. This class comprises such characters as are composed of two or more parts, the meaning of which, when combined, form a new word having a meaning derived from those two parts: thus they say, jin yen wei sin, man and words make truth, verity, or good-faith; i. e. a man who keeps his word is truthful, and may be trusted. 5. The characters tsò, the left hand, and yiú, the right hand, are examples adduced under this class; the first inverted forms the second. i.. 6. The characters I kiáng and hò, both meaning a river, are given to illustrate this class; in each case one part of the character indicates the form, and the other the sound of running water. Such, the Chinese would have us believe, was Fuhí's knowledge of lexicography. Modern writers have improved on this system, retaining the six classes, subdividing and arranging under them all the characters of the language. The regulation of times and seasons, the rites and usages of domestic and social life, the administration of government, and the cultivation of music, all engaged the attention of this illustrious patriarch-this son of heaven. His reign was 115 years. Some writers say that his immediate successors were fifteen in number, and reigned 17,787 years. ART. VIII. Report of Chinese schools for boys and girls under the care of the Rev. Alexander Stronach and Mr. R. T. Grylls, at Penang. "OUR boys are all under engagements for a definite number of years, five, six, or seven,-according to their ages on entering school. The penalty for leaving before their terms expire is to refund $2 for every month the boys shall have been supported here. This penalty has been enforced in two cases, so they all feel that their engagements are binding. "The boys all read Chinese. The first class of them read through two books of Confucius; but I then thought that, in future, all their reading should be Christian, for I saw them but too ready to fall into the Chinese notion, that all wisdom rested with their heathen sages. Since that time, they have read through Collie's Shing King, Medhurst's Shin Lun, &c., and now they are reading the New Testament in Chinese. The boys of the second class are now reading in the gospel harmony; those of the third class is Medhurst's Lun Yü; and the fourth class in his three character book. All that the boys read in Chinese is explained to them both in the colloquial Fukien and in English. Twenty of the boys daily write in the Chinese character; their autographs are herewith sent. "Daily, at our morning worship, the more advanced boys read and translate into Chinese some part of the English Old Testament; and all the others, except one newly come, read in the New Testament, Tender the verses they read into Chinese; while the whole is explained to the boys assembled in the English and Chinese language. At our evening worship, also, each boy repeats a verse, or verses, of Scripture, which he has previously committed to memory; and the truths in these verses are explained to them, and are endeavored to be brought home to their hearts in their own language. All the boys, and also all the girls in our female school, attend the English service at the mission chapel every Lord's day evening. There are in our girl's school, at present, twenty daughters of Chinese; and their progress in acquaintance with divine truth is very encouraging. "Mr. R. T. Grylls, the English teacher, has furnished the accompanying statement of the progress which the boys have been making in their English studies. "Reading. The 1st class, consisting of six boys, are now reading Marshman's Brief Survey of History. They have read the first two volumes through, and are now going through it again in short lessons: they first read the lesson, then go over it again, giving a kind of paraphrase: afterwards, they spell the principal words; and occasionally are required to write, without referring to their books, an abridgment of what they have read for some days past. This class has read, in the same way, except the writing, English instructor No. 3, of the Calcutta School-book Society; Scripture Lessons of the British and Foreign School Society; Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Pike's Persuasives to Early Piety, and the Traveler, all of the Religious Tract Society. The 2d class, of eleven boys, are now reading the Scripture Lessons of the B. and F. School Society. These boys first read their lesson; then explain it, as well as they can in English and in Chinese, and afterwards spell it. They have read the lessons now in use by the 3d and 4th classes. The 3d class, of eight boys, is now reading English Instructor No. 2d, excepting the English explanation. The 4th class, of four boys, are reading Select lessons from Scripture, published by the B. and F. S. S. on sheets. 3, in the same way as the "Grammar. The first class, of six boys, have gone through Len+ nie's Grammar, learning the rules and writing the exercises. These boys can parse any sentence at first sight with ease. The 2d class, of four boys, can parse any simple sentence. Their been chiefly oral, having used no book but Cobbin's. The 3d class, of seven boys, know the parts of speech, and after the holidays, will commence either Lennie or McCulloch. instruction has "Writing. All the boys, excepting the four of the last reading class, are writing English; and to give you a better opportunity of judging of their progress, I inclose with this some loose leaves taken from their copies. |