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Title: The Scribbler 1821-07-05 Volume 1, Issue 02
Date of first publication: 1821
Author: Samuel Hull Wilcocke 1766-1833 (Editor)
Date first posted: Dec. 10, 2014
Date last updated: Dec. 10, 2014
Faded Page eBook #20141212
This eBook was produced by: Marcia Brooks & the online Distributed Proofreaders Canada team at http://www.pgdpcanada.net
| Montreal. | Thursday,5th July, 1821. | No. II. |
There is so much sublimity, and so much imperial magnanimity and munificence, displayed in the proclamation, addressed by the new Emperor of China to his subjects, on his accession to the throne last year, that it is worthy of being recorded as a splendid example of united dignity and benevolence. The pride of superior civilization, and the prejudices of European habits, would fain persuade us that the Chinese Empire is nearly allied to barbarism; and, when this document comes to be discussed by the European political writers, they may probably wish us to believe that the vapid, technical, and cautious diction, in which diplomacy wraps up the state-papers of modern Europe, and of its imitator, the federal republic of America, is preferable to this noble production of the East. This proclamation has but recently been received from the American consul at Canton, and the perusal of it will be a sufficient apology to my readers for making it the subject of an essay.
"Our Ta-tsing dynasty has received the most substantial proofs of Heaven's kind care. Our[Pg 10] ancestors Tae-tsoo, and Tae-tsung, began to lay the vast foundations of our empire, and She-tsoo became the sole monarch of China. Our sacred ancestors, Kang-he, the emperor, Yung-chung, the glory of his age, and Keen-lung, the eminent in honour, all abounded in virtue, excelled in martial prowess, consolidated the renown of the empire, and moulded the whole into peace and harmony.
"His late Majesty, who has now gone the great journey, governed all under the canopy of heaven for five and twenty years, exercising the utmost vigilance and labour. Neither evening nor morning was he ever idle; assiduously did he aim to follow the best possible rule, and hence his government became excellent and illustrious. The court and the country felt for him the deepest reverence, and the benevolence of his heart was universally diffused through the benevolence of his administration. In China and beyond it, order and tranquility prevailed, and the common people were happy in multitudes. But in the midst of hopes that his glorious reign would be long protracted, and that the help of heaven would be received many days, the dragon charioteer (the emperor,) on alighting to bless with his august presence the village of Lwanyang, unexpectedly became a guest on high.
"My sacred and indulgent father had, in the year that he began to rule alone, silently settled that the heavenly seat, (the throne,) should devolve upon my humble person. Conscious of the feebleness of my virtue, I felt at first very fearful that I should not be competent to the office, but reflecting that the sages, my ancestors, have left to their posterity their statutes and example; that his late Majesty has laid this duty upon me, and that the throne of heaven (the Chinese throne,) ought not to remain long vacant, I do violence to[Pg 11] my feelings, and force myself to intermit awhile my heart-felt grief, that I may with reverence obey the unalterable decree, and on the 19th of the eighth moon, (October 3, 1820,) I propose devoutly to announce the event to heaven, to earth, to my ancestors, and to the Gods, and shall then seat myself on the imperial throne. Let the next year be the first of Taou-kwang.
"I look upwards, and hope to emulate the excellence of former times. I lay my hand on my heart with feelings of respect, and cautious sincerity. When a new monarch addresses himself to the empire, he ought to confer benefits on his kindred, and extensively bestow gracious favours. Whatever is proper to be done on this occasion is stated below:
"1. On all persons having the title of wang, (king,) and downwards, and those of and above the rank of kung, (duke,) let gracious gifts be conferred.
"2. On all nobles below the rank of kung, down to that of kih-kih, let gracious gifts be conferred.
"3. Whether at court or in the provinces, Mantchou or Chinese officers, great and small, civil and military, shall be promoted one step.
"4. The deceased parents of officers who have received posthumous titles of honour, shall have those titles increased to correspond with the promotion of their sons.
"5. Officers at Court of the fourth degree, and those in the provinces of the third, shall have the privilege of sending one son to the kuo-tze-keen (national college.)
"6. Officers who have been deprived of their rank, but retained in office, and whose pay has been stopped or forfeited, shall have their rank and pay restored.[Pg 12]
"7. Let the number of candidates to be accepted at the literary examination in each province, be increased from ten to thirty.
"8. Let the required time of residence in the kuo-tze-keen be diminished one month on this occasion.
"9. Let all the keu jin graduates be permitted, as a mark of honour, to wear a button of the sixth degree of rank.
"10. Let officers be dispatched to sacrifice at the tombs of the departed Emperors and Kings of every past dynasty; at the grave of Confucius; and at the five great mountains, and four great rivers of China.
"11. Excepting rebels, murderers, and other unpardonable offenders, let all those who may have committed any crimes before day-break on the 17th day of the 8th month, (the day of succeeding to the throne) be forgiven. If any again accuse them of crimes forgiven, punish the accuser according to the crime which he alleges against the person forgiven.
"12. All convicts in the several provinces who have been transported for crimes committed, but who have conducted themselves with propriety, shall be permitted to return to their homes.
"13. Tartars under the different banners, and persons of the imperial household, convicted of the embezzlement of property, and punished by penalty, if it can be proved that they really possess no property, let them all be forgiven.
"14. Let all sons and grandsons of officers of government, who have been subjected to penalties or forfeitures on account of their fathers' crimes, be forgiven.
"15. Let officers and privates in the Tartar army to whom government may have advanced money, not be required to pay it.[Pg 13]
"16. Let all old soldiers of the Tartar and Chinese army, who have seen service and are now invalided, have their cases examined into, and have some favour conferred on them, in addition to the legal compensation they already receive.
"17. Let enquiry be made in all the provinces for those families in which there are five generations alive, and for those who have seen seven generations, and let rewards be conferred in addition to the usual honorary tablet given by the law.
"18. Agriculture is of the first importance to the empire. Let the officers of government every where grant honour to those who are diligent in ploughing and sowing.
"19. Old men have in every age been treated with great respect. Let there be a report made of all above seventy, both Tartars and Chinese, with the exception of domestic slaves, and of persons who possess rank.
"20. Let one months pay be given to certain of the Mantchou, and Mungkoo Tartar soldiers, and also to the Chinese regiments who joined the Tartar standard at the conquest.
"21. Let men who belong to the Tartar army and who are now above seventy years of age, have each a man allowed to attend upon them, and excuse them from all service. To those above eighty years give a piece of silk, a catty of cotton, a measure of rice, and ten catties of flesh meat, and to those above ninety years of age, double those largesses.
"22. Let all the overseers of asylums for widows and orphans, and for sick people, be always attentive and prevent any one from being destitute.
"Lo! succeeding now to the throne, I will apply myself to give repose to the multitudes and the nations around me. Assist me, my people, to[Pg 14] sustain the burden laid on my shoulders. I receive the charge of the great concerns of the heavenly empire (China) with reverence and awe. Ye kings and statesmen, officers high and low, civil and military, every one be faithful and devoted, and aid me in sustaining this vast fabric, in order that the dominions of the imperial family may be preserved for tens and hundreds of thousands of years, in never-ending tranquility and glory. Promulgate this to all under heaven; cause every one to hear it."
We see here the sovereign of upwards of three hundred millions of subjects, calling upon his nobles, his statesmen, his people, to assist him in the weighty responsibility which the possession of the throne of his ancestors imposes upon him. Referring, with becoming pride, to the fame of his most renowned predecessors, he pledges himself, (certainly, however, with an affectation of humility that a little spoils the simple grandeur of his proclamation) to follow their footsteps; and professes that the happiness and tranquility of his subjects will be his constant and sole object. Acts of munificence, amnesty, and benevolence worthy of a great monarch follow, and, allowing for the customs of China, where from the Emperor to the meanest individual, parental and filial relations form the great basis and bond of society, and every thing is modelled upon the patriarchal form of government, such acts as must be in the highest degree acceptable to the whole nation. Nor are the amnesties he grants, unqualified or indiscriminate. Sons who are suffering disgrace for their parents crimes; officers, degraded in rank, but still considered sufficiently trust-worthy to retain their stations; crown-defaulters, who have no pecuniary means; criminals whose offences are not of an unpardonable nature, convicts[Pg 15] transported who have behaved well; are the subjects he selects for rejoicers at his jubilee. Invalided soldiers, and aged citizens are the objects of his bounty; dignitaries and officers receive promotion and honour; and the literature, the religion of the country, agriculture, and public charity, are enjoined to be fostered, observed, and encouraged.
As I have been engaged on a Chinese subject, I will, to variegate the scene and for the gratification my fair readers, give them the following description of the appearance of some Chinese ladies by a recent traveller; (Dr. Clarke Abel.) They are described as being low of stature, with faces longer than those of the men, but so covered with a flesh-coloured paste that the tint of their complexion could not be discovered. There was a general air of languor about them. Their hair was black, and neatly rolled up on the crown of the head, and ornamented with flowers. Their dress consisted of a loose blue cotton robe with long sleeves and a pair of loose trowsers of a pink colour. The robe was fastened before by several buttons from the chin downwards, and fell below the calf of the leg. Its sleeves covered their hands. The trowsers were fastened about the ancle, and almost covered with their folds the small and tight shoe which peeped from beneath them. The predilection of the men in China for very small feet in women, and the consequent crippled and unnatural shape to which the Chinese ladies reduce their feet are well known. Disfiguring and hurtful as this preposterous custom is I scarcely, however, know whether I shall admit it to be more so than the strait, stiff, and angular shapes into which whalebone and steel torture the naturally[Pg 16] beautiful contour of the bosoms and waists of most of our belles. This is a subject I shall take up with warmth, as soon as I have received a report from a committee I have appointed to collect and describe to me all the new imported female fashions by the spring ships. This committee consisting of a lively Canadian lass of sixteen, an English matron of twenty-five, a sentimental American lady, and a sprightly young Irish widow, I have no doubt but they will, by their chair-woman, the widow, give in a faithful report, accompanied by such remarks and illustrations as will enable me to expatiate on the subject con spirito.
In the mean time, ladies, please to accept as a testimony of my devotion, the following jeu d'esprit, or whatsoever else you may call it, occasioned by reading a long and tiresome dissertation on the probable site of the garden of Eden.
Intended as a miscellany of literature, amusement, criticism, satire and poetry; excluding news, party politics, religious controversy, and personal scandal.
Printed and published by James Lane, price 6d. per No. or to permanent subscribers, 6s. per quarter, 11s. 6d. for six months, or 22s. per annum.
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Transcriber's Note: Obvious printer errors, including punctuation, have been corrected, with the exception of those listed below. All other inconsistencies have been left as they were in the original.
[The end of The Scribbler 1821-07-05 Volume 1, Issue 02 edited by Samuel Hull Wilcocke]