Reading & Question Answer

In Cheng and Lestz with Jonathan. The Search for Modern China:A Documenta,y Collection, 218-229.

THE BOOK OF HEAVENLY COh--(MANDMENJ'S ( TIANTIA.O !:,r!U)

This officially promulgated by the 'faipings in 1852, was probahir written several years e,nlier to serve as a basic statement of the God Worshipers' creed arnl religious practice when they were first organized. It bespeaks a simple and unpretentious faith,.· constantly reiterating the hope of lfollven an<l fear of hell. Much of it is devoted td forms that arc to be used in the :,aying of prayers, grace at meals, and so on, and to an. explanation of the Ten Commandments. 1n last category we find provisions for segregation of the sexes and prohibitions against opiurn smoking and gambling.

\Vhen a translation of th.is work by W. H. Medhurst .ippeared in the English•) language North China Herald on · 14, the editor commented: "We cannot: help thinking that this is a most extraordinary document, and can see in it little td

object ag�,inst. 'l\\·o things strike us on reading it carefully through: the one is that with the exception of occasional reference� to redemption by Christ and apparenti extracts from the Lord's Prayer, the ideas seem to be generally taken from the Old

i ;

Testament, with little or nothing from the New; the other is that it appears t!) be mainly a compilation drawn up by the rebels themselves, for if a Christian missional)f;

;0,

The Flea11enl~-' Kingdom of the Tt1i/>ing.~ 219

ht.id had anything to do with it, he certainly would not have clirccl'cd the offering 11p oLmimals, wine, tea, and rice even though these offerings were presented to the Great

Cod. As it is, we repeat it is <l mo~t extraordinary proclnction, and were the rebels to act up to everything therein contained, !hey \\·onld be the most gent1c mid morn] set of rebels we e\·cr met with."

The translation givc11 here is adapted a11cl revised from that of Mcdhurst as

emended 011 the basis of other c;irly editions of the text by members of the Modem

Chinese History Project, Far Eastern and Rnssian lnstitute, Univenity of\Vashington, as a part of The 'J'aiping Rebellion: History ond Documents, by Frum Michael, pub- lislwcl in 1971.

Who in this mortal world has not offended against the l lcavenly Command-

ments? If one was not aware of his offense in former times, he can still be

excused; now, however, as the Lord Goel has already issued a gracious procla-

mation, henceforth whoever knows how to repent of his sins in the presence of

the Lord Cod, not to worship folsc spirits, not to practice perverse things, and

not to transgress the Heavenly Commandments, shall be permitted to ascend

to H.eaven and to enjoy dignity and honor without encl. Whoever does not know

how to repent of his sins , .. will most certainly be punished by being sent

down to hell to suffer bitterness, and for thousands and myriads of years to suffer

sorrow and pain without end. \Vhich is gain and which is loss, we ask you to

think over. Our brothers and sisters thronghout the mortal world, ought not all

of vou to awaken from your lethargy? If, however, yon continue unrousecl, then arc you truly base-horn, truly deluded by the devil, and truly is there bliss that )'Oll do not know how to enjoy. l:ia]

Now, those whose minds have been deluded by the demons always say that

only the monarch can worship the Lord God. However, the Lord Cod is the

universal F,rther of all in the mortal world. Monarchs are his able children, the

good his filial children, the commoners his ignorant children, and the violent

and oppressive his disobedient children, If you say that monarchs alone can worship the Lord God, we beg to ask you, as for the parents of a family, is it

only the eldest son who can be filial and obedient to his parents?

Again it has been folselv said that to worship the Great Goel is to follow barbarians' ways. They do not know that in the ancient world monarchs and

subjects alike all worshiped the Lord Cod. As for the great Way of worshiping

the Lord Goel, from the very beginning, when the Lord Cod created in six days

Hc,wen and earth, monntains and seas, man and things, both China and the

barbarian nations walked together in the great Way; however, the various bar-

barian countries of the West have continued to the end in the great Way. China

also walked in the great \:Vay, but within the most recent one or two thonsancl years, China has erroneously followed the devil's path, thus being captured by the dcrnon of hell. Now, therefore, the Lord God, out of compassion for hn,

;::.-20 TflE :.\1ATURATION 01: CHIN.ESE C!VILIZ,\TION

rnanity, li,ts extended his capable hand to save the people of the world, deliver them from the devil's grasp, and lead them out to walk again in the original great Way. [ia-bl

A Form to Be Observed in Repenting Sins

Let the suppliant kneel down in the sight of Heaven and pray to the Lord Goel to forgive his sins. He may use a written form of prayer, and when the prayer is over, he may either take a basin of water and wash his whole body clean, or he may pcrfonn his ablutions in the river, which will be still better. After re- penting his sins, let him morning and evening worship the Lord Goel, beseech- ing that the I.ore! Cod look after him, ,ind grant him l-Iis Holy Spirit to transform his heart. When taking his meals, he should give thanks to Cod, and every seventh day worship and praise Cod for His grace and virtue. Let him also constantly obey the ten Heavenly Commandments. Do not on any account let him worship all the false spirits that are in the world, still less let him do any of the corrupt things of the world. In this manner, the people may become the sons and daughters of the Lord Goel. While in the world the Lord God will look after them, and after ascending to Heaven the Lord Cod will graciously love them, and in high I-leaven they will eternally enjoy bliss. l:2a-b] ·

The Ten Heavenly Commandments

1. Honor and worship the Lord Cod .... 1

2. Do not worship false gods .... 3. Do not take the name of the Lord God in vain. + On the seventh day, worship and praise the Lord God for his grace .... 5. Be filial and obedient to thy Father and Mother. . 6. Do not kill or injme men .... 7. Do not indulge in wickedness and lewdness.

In the world there are many men, all brothers; in the world there are many women, all sisters. For the sons and daughters of Heaven, the men have rnen 's quarters and the wcnnen have women's quarters; they are not--! allowed to intermix. Men or women who commit adultery or who are licentious are considered monsters; this is the greatest possible transgres' sion of the Heavenly Commandments. The casting of amorous glances, : the harboring oflustful imaginings about others, the smoking of opium, , and the singing of libidinous songs are all offenses against the Heavenly') Commandment.

L The {:01mn1;:ntary of th(:' '!:tiping expo~itor has bec11 omitt(;:d except for the last. coinmandments.

The Heavenly Kingdom of the Tai/>ings 221

8. Do not steal or rob. Poverty and riches arc granted by the Lord Cod, ancl whosoever steals

or plunders the property of others transgresses the Heavenly Command- ment.

9. Do not tell [or spread] falsehoods. All those who speak wildly, falsely, or treacherously, and those who

use coarse and vile language transgress against the Heavenly Command- ment.

10. Do not think covetous thoughts. When a man looks upon the beauty of another's wife or daughter and

then covets that ,nan's wife or daughter; when a man looks upon the richness of another man's possessions and then covets that nwn's pos:st!s- sions; or when a man engages in gambling and buys lottery tickets and bets on names,' all these are transgressions of the Heavenlv Command- ment. [6b-8a]

[Xiao Yishan, Taij)ing 'J'icmguo congshu, ser. 1, ce 1, pp. rn-~b, 6b-8a]

A P/WvIER IN VERSE ( YOUXUI,: SHI)

T'his official text, firr~t published in 1851, offers simple and concise formulations -

edsi1y put l'o memory- ofbusic religious and morn! principles that the 'faiping leaders wished tu inculcate in their fo1lowcrn. Although opposed to Confucianism iusofar as

it was identified with the established regime or took on the appcarnnce of a religious

cult, lhe 'f'aipings accepted much that" Ls readily recognizable ~1s Confucian in social a11d politieal ethics.

Praising God

The Lord Goel-on-High, the divine Being Is rcspectfttlly worshiped in all countries. Men and women throughout the world, Pay homage to Him morning and evening. All that we sec, above and below, Basks in the Lord's favor. In the beginning it took only six days For tire creation of all things to be completed. Is there anyone, circumcised or uncircumcised

1

Not created bv Goel'

::. It w;:is ,1 comm<>il prncticc uf tlk l'imt, cspeci,il!y in C1rnngdong, to bet on whu would $tJcci:ed in the st,itc c:,,,:;irnin:itions. C,rn1b1ing cluhs wer<:'. es!uhlishcd for this-l)nrpose. Thl' Cnnng" chig government first fined such gambling and later c()llcclcd ,1 gmnbling l;tx from the club:-.

2::?.2 THE '.\-1:\Tl)RAT!ON OF Ctlll\ESE CJ.V.ll.lZAT!OA

Give thanks [to llim] for the IIeavenly favor Thal you may obtain everlasting glory.

Praising Jesus Christ

Jesus was c1 Crown Prince,

\1/horn God sent to earth in ancient times. He sacrificed His life for the sins of men, Being the first to offer meritorious service. It was hard to hear the Cross; Grieving clouds darkened the sun. The noble Prince from Heaven, Died for you - men and women.

Having returned to Heaven after His resurrection, In His glory, He holds all power. Upon Him we are to rely- Be saved and enter Paradise!

Praising Parents

[Just a~] the stori11g up of grain provides against starvation,

[So] the raising up of children provides against old age. I-le who is filial to his parents will have filial sons. Thus, mysteriously, is recompense made. You should ask yourself, How you were able to grow up.' Respect the teaching of the Fifth Heavenly

Commandment; Honor and wealth will shower down on you from the

Heavenly Court.

The Irnperial Court

The imperial court is an awesome place.

With fear and trembling heed the imperial authority as if it reached into your very presence.

The power of life ,rnd death belongs to the Son-of-Heaven. Among the officials none should oppose Him.

1-Thrnugh the loving care of yom parenh.

The Heavenly Kingdom of !he Tai/;ings 223

'I 'he Way of a King

If OllC man, aloft, upholds the Right, The myriad states all enjoy repose.' Let the king alone hold power; And all slander and depravity will disappear forever.

The \Vay of the Minister

The more virtuous the master, the more honest will be His ministers. Wisc kings produce good officials.

Yi [Yin] and [Duke] Zhou have set the example [for ministers]. Upholding justice, they maintained discipline at court.

The \Vay of the Family

Kinsfolk within the household- Be cheerful mid happy! Be harmonious aHd united as one body, Blessings will shower clown npon you from Heaven.

There-follow similar maxims for eleven other familr relationshijJs from mother and son

to older and younger :;isterwi11-lmv, as well a1:, in;unctions with regard to sexual chastity

u.nd ficlelily and disci/Jlining of the senses. For the most part these are of a traditional Chinese character, and largely Conf1.1cian, like the ver:ws above. Filwllr the primer concludes with the following:

Paradise

\Vhcthcr to be noble or mean is for yon to choose. "fo be a real man you must make an effort to improve yourself. Follow the teaching of the 'len Commandments; You will enjoy the blessings of Paradise.

[Xiao Yislrnn, Taif)ing 'J'ianguo congslrn, ser. 1, ce 4, pp. rn-56 1 141-1-b]

THE TAIPING ECONOiVIIC PROGRAM

The following selection is taken from The Land S)'Slem of the Heavenly Kingdom ('fid1H:lwo tianmu zhidu), which w,1s included in the list of official 'T'aiping publica-

tions promulgated in 1853. lts precise riuthorship is uncertain, and then: is no ed- dc-nct! of a serious attempt having been made to put this system into effect in '13iping-

contro1kd nreas. Nevertheless, as n statement of 'fhiping aims, the document carried

+ These two lines are c1dapte<l from the opening pass..igc: of the Classic of Clwnges.

224 THC: J\·lATURA'J'lO:\ OF CHINESE CJVll.lZATIO:,./

with it all the weight of Hong Xiuquan's authority and tluit of the l~~,1stcm Ki Ilg, Yang Xiuqiug, then at the height of his power. It reflects one of the chief appcc1ls that the

movement made to the Chinese peasantry. The plan set forth here amounts to a blueprint for the total organization oF society,

and especially of its human resources. If its initial concern is with the hmd problern, as the title indicates, it quickly rnoves on to other spheres of human activity and brings them under a single pattern of control. The basic organization is military in nature,

reminiscent of the former-soldier militia of earlier dym1stics. ln its economic egalih1r-

ianism1 totalitarian communisn1, authoritarian hierarchy. and messianic zeal, this'T11i~

pi11g manifesto foreshadows aspects of the Chinese Communist movement of the

t\vcntieth century, \vhile at the same time it echoes reformers and rebels of the past. Most typically it recalls tbe fondness of earlier Chinese thinkers for a neat, symmetrical system embodying the supreme values of Chinese thought: order, balance, and

harmony.

Nevertheless, we can appreciate how conservative Confucians would have recoiled

at the thought of so much economic regimentation. Zeng Cuofan, le,nder in the strug-

gle against the 'Hlipings, commented, "The former cannot till his own land and [sim-

ply] pay taxes on it; the land is all considered to be the land of the Heavenly King

[and all prodnce goes directly to the communal treasury]. 'f'hc merchant cannot en-

gage in trade for hin1sclF and profit thereby; all goods are considered to be the goods

of the Heavenly King." The organizahonal note is struck at the outset with an explanation of the system

of army districts and 111ilitary administration (omitted here). \Ne reproduce below only

the basic economic program.

All officials who have rendered meritorious service are to receive hcreditmy

stipends from the court. For the later adherents to the "faiping cause, every

farnily ill each military district (jun) is to provide one man to serve as a militia

man, During an emergency they arc to fight under the command of their

officers to destroy the enemy and to suppress bandits. In peacetime they are to

engage in agriculture under the direction of their officers, tilling the land and

providing support for their superiors.

All land [in the countril is to be classified into !Tille grades .. , .

The classification of the land into nine grades that follows is based on that found in t/,e

"Tribute of Yu" section of t!ie Classic of Documents (Slmjing); the general method land allocc,t/011 follows the principle set forth in the Rites of Zho,1, Di guan, xia, co·ovi:'

4:24-

The distribution of all la1Td is to be based on the number of persons in

family, regardless of sex. A large family is entitled to more land, a snrnll one less. The land distributed should not be all of one grade but mixed, 'I'lms for family of six, for instance, three arc to have fertile land and three barren land

half and half of each.

The Ueawnly Kingdom of the Tai pings 225

All the land in the country is lo he cultivated by the whole population together. lf there is an insufficiency jof Janell in this pl.ice, move some of the people to another place. If there is an insufficiency in another place, move them to this one. All lands in the country arc also to be mutually supporting with respect to abundance and scarcity. If this place has a drought, then draw upon the abundant har1·cst elsewhere in order to relieve the distress here. lf there is a drought there, draw upon the abundant harvest here in order to relieve _the distress there. Thus all the people of the eountrv may enjoy the great bless- ings of the Heavenly Father, Supreme Ruler and Lord God-on-High. The land is for all to till, the food for all to eat, the clothes for all to wear, and money for all to spend. Inequality shall exist nowhere; none shall suffer from lmnger or cold ....

l\:Iulberry trees are to be planted along the walls [ of villages] throughout the country. All vvomen are required to grow silkworms, to do weaving, and to make clothes. Every family of the country is required to raise five hens and two hogs, in keeping with the proper breeding seasons. 1

During the harvest season, the Group Officer'' should direct [ the grain col- lection bil the sergeants. Deducting the amount needed to feed the twenty-five families until next harvest season, he should collect the rest of the produce for storage in state granaries. The same method of collection is applicable to other kinds of products, such as barlev, beans, ramie fiber, cotton clothes, silk, do- mestic animals, silver and copper cash, and so on, for all people under Heaven are of one family belonging to the Heavenly hither, the Supreme Ruler, the Lord God-on-High. Nobody should keep private property. All things should be presented to the Supreme Ruler, so that He will be enabled to make use of them and distribute them equally to all rncmbers of his great world-family. Thus all will be sufficientlv feel and clothed.

The Croup Officer must keep a record of the amount of grnin ,md cash he has collected and report them to the 'I'reasurers and Receiving and Disbursing 'Idlers.!\ state treasury and a chnrch are to be established among every twenty- five farnilics, m1der the direct administration of the Group Officer. All expcn-

.-diturcs of the twenty-five families for weddings, births, or other festival occasions arc to be paid for out of the state treasury. But there is to be a fixed limit; not a penny is to be spent bevond that. ... 'I'hus, throughout the land in the contracting of marriages, wealth need he no consideration.

In the twenty-five farnilv units potte1y-rnaking, metalworking, cmpentry, ma- sonry. and other such skilled work should be performed by the sergeants and militiamen in the off-seasons from farming and military service.

In conducting the different kinds of festival ceremonies for the twcntv-five families under his administration, the Croup Officer should hold rcligioL;s ser-

5. :\ paraphrnsc of MenC/u.~ 1:\:7. 6. The tiang sima, official in charge nf c,ich twcnt:·~l!\·e-forniiy group.

226 THE MATURATION O'F CH1NESE C[VILIZA'l'ION

vices to pray to the Heavenly Father, the Supreme Ruler and Lord God-on-

High. All the bad customs of the past must be completely abolished.

[Xiao 'Yishan, Taiph1g Tiang110 congslwi scr. 1, ce 4, pp. rn-3a]

TE-IE PRINCIPLES OF TJ-/E HE;\VENLY NATURE (TIANQING DAOLJSHU)

This official work, dated 1854, was written after the Taipings had established their

capital at Nanjing and the first flush of victory had given way to a seerning letdown

in morale, discip1ine, and zeal for the cause. It served to restate the religious creed of the Taipings and emphasize those qualities- self-sacrifice, loyalty, and solidarity-

that had contributed to their amazing successes. T11e appeal throughout is to a dedi- ·:

. cated and crusading military elite.

Another irnporlant purpose of the book was to enhance and consolidate the position ,;

of the Taiping leadership, especially that of the Eastern King, Yang Xiuqing, who wa\)

virtual p.rirne minister of the regime and the one ,vho inspired the \\Titing of thiS ;::

document. \Ve sec here in a strange new garb the old conception of the ruler as

commissionecl with divine powers to unite the world and establish peace. Both Hong

and Yang are thus represented as in some degree sharing the role of Jesus Christ as,,:, saviors of the world. Since it would not have done for any of the "kings" to engagf!! openly in such self-glorification, nominal authorship is attributed to the "marquise<'.-;:;! and "chancellors" who constituted the next-highest ranks in the 'faiping hierarchy:,!!

Extant editions of the text appear to date from about 1858, by which time rivalri¢$!'.J: and mistrust had split the leadership, Yang had been assas.sin.it.ed, and his assassin, th~1!;!

Northern King, murdered by Hong. Though there are many direct and indirect evh::!l; deuces of dissension, the text has not been amended or adjusted to these later deve]-I!

opments except to strip the Northern King of his rank.

The translation here has been adapted from that of C. T. I-Ju for the documentarj}I - ,-:;n

histol)' of the Taiping Rebellion prepared by the IV!oclcrn Chinese Histo1y Project o\i;IJ the P\n Eastern and Russian Institute, University of VVashington. +

ii!J]

We marquises and chancellors hold that our brothers and sisters have beeii'!\J blessed by the Heavenly !•:ether and the Heavenly Elder Brother, who saved th~j:[JI ensnared and drowning and awakened the deluded; they have cast off worldl~illl

sentiments and now follow the true \i\lay. They cross mountains and wade rivers:i[jj

not even ten thousand Ii being too far for them to come, to uphold togethe~li[ the true Sovereign. Armed and bearing shield and spear, they carry righteouml[[

banners that rise colorfully. Husband and wife, men and women, express com~ttl

111011 indignation and lead the advance. lt can be said that they are determine<l!!il to uphold Heaven and to requite the nation with loyalty. [za-b] !!ill

In the ten thousand nations of the world everyone is given life, nourished,{!!

protected, and blessed by the Heavenly E1ther, the Supreme Ruler and Lor1:iil God-on-High. Thus the Heavenly Father, the Supreme Ruler and Lord God':1i

<AW

The lleavenl)' Kingdom of the Taif,ing.s 227

on-High, is the universal father of 111an in all the ten thousand nations of the ,rnrld. There is no man who should not be grateful, there is no man who should

not reverently worship Him .... [4a-5a]

There follow citaticm!J from the Confucian classic1-: referring to the Lord-on-High (Shangdi), vvhich are taken here as shmving that God wa,~ knmvn to and ivorshi/Jed by the ancient Chinese. Subsequently, however, various /lmn~ of idolatry (trose.

However, worldly customs daily degenerated. There were even those who likened themselves to rulers, and, being deluded in heart and nature, arrogant

vet at fault, and falselv self-exalted, forbade the prime minister and those below

to sacrifice to Heave~. Then [these men] competed in establishing false gods and worshiping them, thus opening up the ways of the devilish demons. The people of the world all followed in like fashion, and this became firmly fixed in their minds. Thereupon, after a considerable time, they did not know their

own errors. Hence the Heavenly Father, the Lord Goel, in view of mortal man's serious crime of disobedience, at his first ,mger, sent down forty days and forty

nights of hea,y rain, the vast waters spreading in all directions and drowning mortal man. Only Noah and his family had unceasingly worshiped the Heav-

enly Father, the Supreme Ruler and Lord God-on-High; therefore, relying on the Heavenly grace, they were fortunate and they ,ilone were preserved. In this,

the first instance of the Heavenly Father's great anger, w,is the great proof of his great powers displayed.

After the Flood, the devilish king of Egypt, whose ambition was mediocrity mid who was possessed hy the demons, envied the Israelites in their worship of Cod and bitterly persecuted them. Therefore, the Heavenly Father in his great anger led the Israelites out of Egypt. In this, the second instance of the Heavenly

Father's great anger, was the great proof of his great powers displayed.

However, the rulers and people of that time still had not completely forgotten the Heavenly grace. But since the emergence of Daoism in the [Chinese] Qin

[dynasty] and the welcoming of Buddhism in the Han [dynasty], the delusion

of man by the demons has clay by day increased, and all men have forgotten the grace :incl virtue of the Heavenly Father. . . The Heavenly Father once again became greatly angered; yet if he were to annihilate them completely, he could not bear it in his heart; if he were to tolerate them, it would not be consonant with righteousness. At that time, the elder son of the Heavenly fa- ther, the Heavenly Elder Brother Jesus, shouldered the great burden and will- ingly offered to sacrifice his life to redeem the sins of the men of the world.

Let us ask your elder and younger brothers: formerly the people sacriliccd only lo the demons; they worshiped the demons and appealed to the demons only because they desired the demons to protect them. Yet how could they think that the demons could really protect them? ... "fo worship them is of no

228 THE i\!L•\TURATION OF ClllNESE Cl\'lL['.l'.AT!ON

avail. However, the men of the world sank even deeper, not knowing how to

awaken themselves. Therefore, the Heavenly Father again became angry.

In the dingyou year l:1837], our Heavenly Either displayed the heavenly grace and dispatched angels to summon the Heavenly King up to !leaven. There He clearly pointed out the demons' pcn•ersities and their deluding of the world. He also invested the Heavenly King with a seal and a sword; He ordered the

Savior, the Heavenly Elder Brother, Jesus, to take command of the Heavenly

soldiers and Heavenly generals and to aid the H.eavenly King, and to attack and

conquer from Heaven earthw,ud. layer by layer, the innnrnerable demons. After

their victory they returned to Heaven and the Heavenly Father, greatlv pleased,

sent the H cavenly King down upon the earth to become the true Tai ping Sov- ereign of the ten thonsand nations of the world and to save the people of the

world. He also bade him not to be fearful and to effect these matters coma- ·

geously, for whenever difficulties appeared, the Heavenly Father would assume

direction and the Heavenly Elder Brother would shoulder the burden. [8a-9a]

Several instances are then given of the way in which Cod's p<Ywer was manif'ested in thft ,! triumpfumt campaigns of the Taiping /Orces and of how His will was made known tc{: them. After describing their fJrogress f,'07n Gwmgxi through Hunan to VVvchang on the. i; Yang,zi, the account tells of their drive down the river to Nanfing.

Fronr Wuchang to Jinling [Nanjing] the land extends as far as a thousand::: Ii; how strategic and important are the passes and river crossings, and how stror,g'.:J and firm are the cities and moats! To attack and capture the cities seemed) difficult; even if victo,y eonlcl have been secured, it appeared that it would tak~!;!

a very long lime. Yet in not more than one month's time, we had followed the::il stream eastward from Wuchang, passing Jiangxi, crossing Anhui, and pushing'.!!

directly up to Jinling, without the least resistance. After reaching this provineiaJ:ii! capital, we found the height and thickness of the city walls and the vashress of;ij;

the land to be indeed twice that of other provincial cities; to ,rttack it seemegl;i:

far more diflieult. Who would have known that within ten days one single effoi\1111

would bring success' Jin ling was captured with our hands hanging at our side~;•JJJ

Had it not been for om Heavenly Father's power, how could things have bee.~il!! so quick and easy? From this we c,m again see the Heavenly Father's powerlq:111

predetermine things. [12b-14a]

Im ''!;I

'There follow accounfa' of the indiridual Taiping leaders showing h(w: each triumph~'rJ:\li orer odrersities and su//ered great hardships in order to advance the cause. :iiii!I

Even the Eastern King in his holiness and the several kings in theiren1inenc~\jl had to undergo cleansing and polishing and repeatedly demonstrate great fo~f!ll

,,:-'I titude before thev could enjoy true happiness. How much more must we eldel]il1

,·,;ii

'T'lie Heavenly Kingdom of the 'J'c1i/1ings 2.J<)

and younger brothers preserve our fortitude in order that we mav seek abundant

blessings .. Recollecting the past, front the righteous uprising i11 Jintian to the capture

of Jinling, we have received great mercy front our llcavcnlv Father and Hcav- cnh· Elderly Brother; we have established our Heavenly capital and in a fe\l· , ears we have been ,1ble to enjoy the great happiness of om Heavenly Father.

\11 this has been due to the work of our Hcavenlv Vi1thcr and om Hcavenlv ' ,. '

Elder Brother, who alone can bring such speedy results. Hence, if, with addi-

tional efforts toward improvement and perfection, we, with united hearts, com-

bine our strength for the immediate extermination of the demons, our Heavenly

F,1ther will display his great powers and instantaneously the seas and lands will be cleared and the hills and rivers united under one comrnancL Then our

younger brothers and sisters will be reunited with their families, and blood

relations will again be together. I-low fortunate that will be 1 [19a-b]

'J''1ete follows a long section dealing with clisobeclie11t and traitorous officen; ,rho sen'e as object fesllons of the fiitilily of deserting or betraying the Taiping cause. It is shown how God. who knmvs and sees all, revealed their wicked designs to the Tai ping leaders. Thus their cowardice and sel(seeking brought them only the most severe J;unishment.

We brothers and sisters, enjoying today the greatest mercy of our Heavenly

{<\1thcr, have become as one family and are able to enjoy true blessings; each

of us must always be thankful. Speaking in terms of our ordinary human feel-

ings, it is true that each has his O\\'n parents and there must be n distinction in

familv names; it is also true that as each has his own honsehold, there 11111st be

a distinction between this boundary and that boundary. Yet we must know that

the ten thousand names derive from the one name, and the one name from

one ancestor. Thus onr origins are not different. Since our Heavenly Father

gave us birth and nourishment, we are of one form though of separate bodies,

and we breathe the s,11ne air though in different places. 'T'his is why we say, "All

are brothers within the four seas.'" Now, basking in the profound mercy of

Heaven, we are of one family ....

\Ve brothers, our minds having been awakened by our Heavenly Father,

joined the camp in the earlier days to snpport our Sovereign, many bringing

parents, wives, uncles, brothers, and whole families. It is a matter of course that we should attend to om parents and look after our \\'ives and children, but when

one lirst creates a new rule, the state must come first and the fomilv last, public interests first and private interests last. iVloreovcr, as it is advis,ible to avoid

suspicion [of improper conduct] between the inner [fcnrnlej and the outer

[male] and to distinguish behscen male and female, so men must ha,·e nrnle

In Ebrey, Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook, 318-322.

70

MID-CENTURY REBELS

Over the centuries China witnessed thousands of violent uprisings. Yet no period suffer$d so many as the mid-nineteenth century, from 1850 to 1873, when the vast Ta/ping Rebellion brought in its wake the Nian Rebellion in the North, .Moslem rebellions in the Southwest dnd Northwest, a Miao rebellion in the Southwest, secret society rebel/ion,; ·along the coast, and many more.

Rebellions varied considerably in their origins and organization. Some '!'ere started by bands of hungry peasants, others by well-organized secret societies that had elaborate ideologies incorporating elements from popular Buddhism and Daoism. The Taiping Rebellion even made use of some Christian beliefs. Nevertheless, virtually all rebellions that had any success also invoked the Con- fucian theory of the mandate of Heaven:. the emperor had ceased to rule with virtue; therefore, he had lost bis mandate and his subjects had the right to rebel.

Sources for the goals, organizing principles, and behavior of rebels are scarce. When rebellions failed, the documents they produced were destroyed as danger- ous. The officials who suppressed the rebels wrote reports, but .most of them lacked firsthand knowledge, objectivity, or sympathy. To overcome some of these shortcomings, the mid-century rebellions are probed here through three sources of differing origin. The first is a group of proclamations of the Small Sword Society, issued when they took over the city of Xiamen on the coast of Fujkm, and preserved by I$ritish diplomats stationed there. The Small Sword Society was one of the secret societies that joined in the general initiative of the Taipings to take several cities in the early 1850s. These proclamations reveal typical rebel ideol- ogy-for instance, evoking the name of the Ming dynasty and the Han people as an anti-Manchu gesture. The second source is the "confessions" a group of rebels made after their capture. These rebels were members of bandit groups loosely related to the Ta/pings. The third source .is a request for military aid sent in by members of the gentry of that same area. These two. pieces, which were also preserved by British officials, can be used together to analyze the social milieu that gave rise to banditry and rebellion,

318

PROCLAMATIONS OF THE XIAMEN SMALL

SWORD SOCIETY

1

The Grand Marshal Huang of the Ming dynasty and the Him people, in order to safeguard the lives of the commoners and merchants, proclaims mar­ tial law:

I have heard that Heaven and earth change the.ir course of order: after a time of great pros­ perity, there must follow a period of chaos, and after a period of great turmoil, there must arise a general desire for peace.

The Qing dynasty has been governing China for more than two hundred years. Corruption of officials and oppression of the people clearly in­ dicate that its mandate has come to an end. I now lead the �ghteous and Benevolent Army to save the people and to punish those who have been cruel. I have ordered that my soldiers shall pillage neither the merchants nor the common people nor shall they rape women. The arrival of my armies will not cause the slightest disturbance to the people. If any soldier disobeys my orders I shall punish him in accordance with martial law, per­ mitting no favoritism. You, the merchants and the people, should apply yourselves to your tasks and should not be frightened. I am strict in abiding by my words and enforcing my orders. You should obey them unerringly.

10th day of the fourth month, 1853

2

Concerning the safety of the people and normal business:

I, the grand marshal, have led my army to re­ cover the southern provinces, to stabilize peace for the four classes of people, and to eliminate bad officials.

Since the emperor of the Qing government is young and ignorant, power has been concentrated in the hands of wicked advisors and officials of

Mid-Century Rebels 319

the prefectures and counties plunder the wealth of the people and use it to ingratiate themselves with their superiors. As a result the people are op­ pressed by greedy officials.

I, the grand marshal, have led the Righteous and Benevolent Army and have recovered Hai­ cheng, Zhangzhou, Guankou, and Tongan. My army has advanced with irresistible power. lf my subordinates have any unruly soldiers who rape women and create disturbances in the streets, you should report them to my officers immediately. I shall execute them and display their heads in pub­ lic in accordance with the law.

All the people-merchants and commoners alike-should carry on with their work and trade as usual. Do not be afraid of my soldiers. After issuing an order I enforce it immediately and do not tolerate offenders. My orders must be obeyed.

3

In the name of the Grand Ming dynasty, Marshal Huang of the Han people proclaims:

It is well known that the way to good govern­ ment is through benevolent policies; yet military strength is essential in governing a state. At this moment I have alreadv conquered Xiamen and must now appoint capable persons to govern it. When employing capable individuals in the gov­ ernment one should pay special attention to their military ability. For this reason those who are able to pacify the world must exert care in choosing men.

Now the people of Xiamen come seeking to take the oaths and join our society. There are hundreds of millions of them. If I do not pro­ claim the rules of recruitment, I am afraid that the wrong persons will be selected, thereby caus­ ing an unnecessary waste of time and resources.

. With the proclamation of this edict, those of you who have obtained the righteous banners from me and who are willing to reconstruct the nation with me should be very careful in the recruit­ ment of more memb.ers. Only the young and the strong and those with experience in the martial

I

320 I The Qing Dynasty

arts should be selected as our members. We fllUSt eliminate the very old, the very young, and the disabled. In other words, we must eliminate all those over sixty years of age and all those under sixteen. Only by following this method can we strengthen our forces. Do not transgress this order.

15th day of the fourth month, 1853

A STATE.\IBNT OF VOLUNTARY SURRENDER BY MEMBERS OF THE GUANGXI ROVING

BMl1)IT GROUP

We men from Guangdong-Da Liyu, Zhang Zhao, Zhang Guihe, Wen Xi-and we men from Guangxi-Tian Fang, Huang Shou, and Liang Fu-make this appeal.

We were born in a time of prosperity and were good people. We lived in towns and were taught to distinguish right from wrong. But because of continuous flooding in our area, we could not get a grain of rice to eat even if we worked hard in the fields, and we could not engage in business be· cause we lacked the funds. As a result we all joined the bandits. •

Not long ago we came to Guangxi to rry to make a living. We met others who had come from our hometowns. We pitied each other be• cause of our sad situation, and together we be" gan to imitate outlaws in order to relieve our hungry stomachs. In other words, no one forced us to join the outlaws. We were driven to join them because we were desperate. Given the chance, we would have returned gladly to our normal way of life. .

We thought constantly of out families, but we could not return to them. Indeed, we were drifting on 8.hungry, painful sea and knew not when we would reach the other side, We hope Your Excel· !ency will forgive our past sins. We hope you will think of the great benevolence of our imperial house and give us a chance to start a new life.

We, humble people, Big-Headed Yang, Lo Da, Hou Jiu, Wang Liu, Lu Xiongjie, report our griev" ance and appeal to you ....

We hate the army runners who recently made heavy demands on us and disturbed our villages. They used the excuse of establishing a local mi" litia to cause trouble for the good and honest people and create opportunities for the wicked ones. The words they used were virtuous• sounding; yet the deeds they actually perpetrated were most wicked. They allied themselves with government officials and formed cliques so that they could oppress our village and falsely re- ported that certain persons were connected with the bandits. This was due to personal grudges against the accused or to the fact that they wanted to obtain rewards. They burned down our houses and took all we had; they robbed u, of our property and threatened our lives. There- fore we handed together to insure our own safety. Those who. still remain in the village may run away someday while those who have left can hardly come back. Therefore, for each ordinary person who ran away, there was one more ban· dit, and the numbers of bandits became greater and greater. Since there are so many of us, we could not survive except by pillage, nor could we save our lives if we did nor fight against the im" perial troops that were sent out to exterminate us. As a consequence, we have offended the court and hurt the merchants.

We have always wanted to correct our behav· ior and to purge ourselves of our beastly nature. We would have liked to return to our homes to enjoy long and happy lives, but we have been left . rambling around, wandering through unknown places because the officials did not have mercy on us. Usually afrer interrogating a bandit, they would kill him or at least expel him. Therefore those who sincerely wanted to correct their past sins were actually risking their lives. If we had sur• rendered to the officials, we also would have had to depend on their mercy. The thought of it tor- tures us day and night. Now, fortunately, Your Excellency has arrived in this area with a commi~ sion to pacify the people. You have loved the peo· pie like your own children; you have disciplined yourself strictly; you have worked diligently fur · the good of the nation and have relieved the suf- ·

fering of the masses. We hope that you will un- derstand our situation and judge fairly. We hope you will treat us leniently and extend your benev- olence to us. We are willing to sell our weapons and buy cows for farming."We render all our re- spect and gratitude to you.

We respectfully report our situation to you.

MEMORIAL OF LI YlJYING, JUREN DEGREE HOLDER, AND TAN DUANYUAN,

SHENGYUAN DEGREE HOLDER, FROM WU PREFECTURE, GUA.N'GXI PROVINCE

Our dynasty has followed the teachings of the ancient sages. As a result everyone in Rong county has lived in harmony for a long time. The population was increasing, and the resources were plentiful; even our dogs and chickens never had to fear disturbance .... However, in 1846 bandits and rebels began gathering on the east side of Liangxu and disturbed our local tranquil- lity. As their power grew, their influence spread. They even captured the city and took the govern- ment officials prisoner, There was no order in· the city, and the rebels roamed everywhere. Gen- try members were killed and captured; women were raped. Corpses were left lying all over the ground; houses were left in ashes; the farmers' fields were thick with weeds. It was sad indeed to see these things happen. . . . They pillaged property even at great distances from their base area and forced the people who were under their control to pay land taxes to them. They con- nived to force officials to send up false reports saying that loyalist forces had recaptured areas that had fallen to the rebels. The bandits used of- ficial seals and issued false edicts to the popu- lace. It was intolerable to have these ruffians dominate the local government!

Last year we were lucky to have the governor and the governor-general decide to lead out their armies to destroy the bandits at Xunzhou. The governor then promised to transfer the army to Rong county where the local militia was trying to consolidate its positions pending the arrival of

Mid-Century Rebel; 321

the government troops. The militia have been fighting for a long time and have become quite weary. I am afraid that, if the local militia col- lapses, the bandits will roam all over the county and prove very difficult for the government troops to control.

The local militia is capable of mustering ten thousand troops, all battle-tested veterans who hate the rebels. It is our opinion that, if only we could get a skilled commander, the militia would be quite effective against the rebels. Unfortu- nately, we have not been able to get an experi- enced officer to lead· them. There have bee.n constant arguments over battle plans, and the militia has never acted in unison. As a result we have often been defeated by the rebels. The pre- fect and governor-general appointed a pair of of- ficers to supervise the local militia. They issued orders, gave out banners and seals, but did not come to take command personally. The local militia, therefore, has nor been united and can- not contribute much to alleviating the critical situation.

Now that the governor of Guangxi province has dispatched his army to wipe out the bandits in Xunzhou, we hope that, after finishing with the bandits there, it will come immediately to Rong

. county to exterminate the rebels and save the people. If Your Excellency sympathizes with all that the people have suffered, please hasten to have the army come here to suppress the rebels .... We might suggest that you consolidate the militias of Teng, Pingnan, Beiliu, Chenqi, and Xinyi counties under your command so that the bandits may not escape our troops by hopping back and forth across county borders. When the government armies arrive in Rong county, have them train the local militia so that it can put up a better defense against the bandits. We would sug• gest also that you proclaim a general amnesty for those who were forced to join the rebels. We have confidence in the strategy of encircling bandit hideouts; we are sure they could not resist your attacks and their days would be numbered ....

Huang Pengfen and Feng Weireng ar.e two leaders well respected by the local militia, If you

322 The Qing Dynasty

were to appoint them commanders, they would get cooperation and would be able to help achieve the goal of ridding our area of rebels. When your armies arrive here we would personally like to join them to take your orders and give you assistance if needed. With your great talent and ability as a

high civil and military official, you will certainly save our people from their hardships ....

With the greatest of humility we present these opinions to you.

Translated by ]eh-hang Lai

I

In de Bary and Lufrano, Sources a/Chinese Tradition, vol. 2, 172-184.

IIONG LIANG JI: ON IMPERIAL l\,!ALFEASANCE AND

CHINA'S POPULATION PROBLEM.

Hong Liangji (1746-1809), a scholar-official from Changzhou m the lower Yangzi valley, ,1dvanced slowly through the civil service system (winning the final degree only at the age of forty-four) and ""JS assigned to minor government

posts and projects, in which he applied himself to a range of statecraft studies and Evidential Learning: geography, local history, government administration, and the classics. His writings show his concerns about problems spawned by the ve,y success of stable rule in a maturing society-problems poorly coped with, in Hong's time, by an increasingly letlrnrgic and corrupt government.

Hong's most distinguishing personal feature was his candor and conscien­ tiousness in fulfilling the Confucian duty of political remonstrance-qualities reflecting a spirit of reformism in the New Text scholarship of his home region. His audacity in criticizing the emperor (see the letter to Prince Cheng below) led to his condernnation and exile for implicitly criticizing the emperor. 'To this same critical temper, perhaps, can be attributed his forthright reconsideration of a fund,nnental assumption in Chinese thinking: that a growing population is an index of good government and is socially desirable. H.ong expressed his ideas. on this subject in a few pages of miscellaneous essays, titled "Opinion," written in 1793, five years before Malthus's Essay on the Princif,le of Pop11/ation. Though Hong's essential insight is the same as Malthus's, he did not think himself as developing a new science according to rigorous methods, nor any later Qing scholar explore his ideas fnrther.

By Western standards China had been heavily populated since before time of Christ - about sixty million, with considerable fluctuation during riods of extreme distress or prosperity. During the century or more before wrote, however, the population began to rise rapidly toward the sev,era!PJ:I hundred-million level. No doubt, simple empirical observation and retlecho1t;J!i' sufficed to convince this acute and inquiring scholar that China was faced a problem of new and massive proportions, pointing to an inherent co11tr.adic· tion in the concept of peaceful rule.

LE'n'ER TO PRINCE CHENG EARNESTLY DISCUSSING THE POLITICAL AFFAIRS OF THE TIYIE, 1799

The following excerpts are from a lo11g letter I-long submitted to Prince Cheng

Jiaqing Emperor) in the autumn of 1799 with the wish that it be drawn lo ,,,,,,Mi,,1<;

attention,

r...,f!Hwse ~tale:·ra/t and the Opening of China to tlw We.st

The letier :;pc-cifie:. Ju det~1il the lack of reform (ollmving the <lisrnissal and death of

the Qi:mlong cmperor's·favorile and protCgi, Hes.hen, ·who had become Hllrpowcrfnl af court The letter criticizes the conduct of Llie Jiaqing emperor himself (for example, being late for audiences ~ir the throne hail ;_md spending a great deal of tim{; wil'h favorite cmJrtic~. inch1dln1; actors) and attar-ks by name offi.:.'.t.:.ils both al <.·011rt and in the provim:cs for cormptfon and ahuse of power. Hong ai!io compl~1ill(:d about the

inadc,'tpialc ch:mncls of cornnnmication with lhe !hrone and the gcueraHy sad state of

loc,il atlrni11lstrnlion. '11)e jiaqing ernperor \Vas infuri~1ted by the lctter1 v,:hen it wris

shown to him. At irnperinl request, the Board of Punishment rt:<.;ommendcd the death

:,entcncc for Hong, h?tcr cummukd to banislnnent to Yili fri Xinjimig.

Why do I say that the selection of personnel and the conduct of administration . . h"ve not been thoroughly reformed? This is because ,ilthough the man [i.e., Hcshen] has been dcult with by law, it has not been objectively discussed ho\\". in nwre than a decade's time, he altered the prccedenl1 cstahlishcd by the dynasty's ancestors and brought forward officials who were personally loyal to hi1n, Amoug the cL1rrent practices of the Grnnd Secretariat) the Six Boards) ~md other government offices, which are in accordance with the established statutes of the state and which are the results of Hcshen's tampering with the prccc- clents? Among the personnel of the Grand Secretariat, the Six Boards, and other government offices, who are really officials employed by the slutc and who, having been placed there by l Ieshen, were implicated in receiving bribes and shared the responsibility for corruption? The emperor is indeed humane we! kind and wishes to deal with the accomplices leniently, Moreover, because so many officials were involved, it is not possible to dismiss them a!L But it is my humble view that in the case of those officials whose [implication in Hcshen's misdeeds! is dearly and accurately k11own, even if their past acts arc not to be inquired into, their names ought to be put down in the registers, so that when they come up for promotion or trnmfer of office, the principle of e'lrcourngc- menl for good deeds mid punishment for evii deeds can be applied to them in an appropriate mmmer. This would make it abund,mtl)' dear to everyone that while the sagacious Son of He,iven does not act excessively, l,c is nonetheless aware of and is acting to make evident the distinction between right and wrong, grmd and evil. In this way, those who, in the past, have known onh· a client- patron relationship rnay he transformed inwardly as well as outwardly into true suhjcels of the slate {guoiia zhi re11 ). Other\\'ise, in the future should the court not be as orderly and above r<cproach as at present, if, unlikdv though it might seem, someone imitated what the powerful minister [Heshenj did, many offi- cials would again gather ,It the gate of such a minister [and offer lhemseJ~,cs as dients; to a pntron].

\Vhy do l say that mornb an<l customs are dcteriornting? {\Vhat J rcfor to is tire fact that] the scholar-cffiei,1ls have increasingly disregarded honor and lost their sense of shame, while the common people have disregarded their socio- ethical duties [,1s seen in the rise of rebellion]. The common people should not

174 THE I\-IATUR.\TlON OF CHINESE C!VlLlZATlON

be blamed for this, however; the responsibility still lies with the scholar-officials themselves. During the past dozen or more vcars, I have seen presidents and

vice presidents of the Six Boards gladly kneel before the chief minister

[Heshcn:I. There have been Grand Secretaries who were supervisors of the

''seven courts" and who, moreoverj were twice as old in age, offering themselves

as disciples and clients (siren) to Heshen. Some officials befriended the servants

of the chief minister and were happy to deal with them on an equal footing.

The imperial academies [including the Hanlin :\cademy] arc [supposed to be]

the font of scholarly rnorals and morale. Now there are academicians who spend

entire evenings begging pitifully to be appointed a Libationer [Rector! (jijiu ), as well as those who will kneel for hours seeking appointment as Lecturer from

the Glassies Mat. ... If such is the behavior of the scholar-officials, how can one criticize the common people for being deceitful and dependent on the

help of others? If these things happen at the imperial court, how can one

criticize the pursuit of selfish interest and corruption in the distant parts of the

empire?

[Hong Liangji1 appendix, Hong Licmgji nianpu, pp. 107-108 ~ KCL]

CHINA'S POPULATION PROBLF:M

There has never been a people who did not delight in living under peaceful

rule, nor a people not happy about living under peaceful rnle that has lasted

for a long time. Peaceful rule that lasts more than one hundred years is consid- ered to have lasted a long time. But in the matter of population, it may be

noted that today's population is five times as large as that of thirty years ago,

ten times as large as that of sixty years ago, and not less than twenty times as

large as that of one hundred years ago. Take, for example, a family that at the time of the great-great-grandfather and the great-grandfather was in possession

of a ten-room house and one hundred mou of farmland. After the man married there were at first only the two of them; they lived in the ten-room house and .

upon the one hundred m011 ofhmcl, and their resources were more than ample.

Assuming that they had three sons, by the time the sons grew up, all three sons

as well as the father had wives; there were a total of eight persons. Eight persons

would require the help of hired servants; there would be, say, ten persons in the household. With the ten-room house and the one hundred mou of farmland, I believe they would have just enough space to live in and food to eat, although barely enough . .In time, however, there will be grandsons, who, in turn, will marry. The aged members of the household will pass away, but there could still be more than twenty persons in the family. With more than twentv persons sharing a ten-room house and working on one hundred m011 of farmland, I am sure that even if they eat very frugally and live in crowded quarters, their needs

will not be met. Moreover, there will be great-grandchildren and gre,1t-great-j

Chmese Stotecmft and the Opening of China to the \Vest 175

cr,mdchildren -the total number in ,1 household will be fifty or sixty times that ~ .

ii, the great-great-grandfather's or greilt-grnndfather's lime. for every household a! the time of the great-grandfather, there will be at least ten households at the time of the great,grnndson and great-great-grandson. There are families whose population has declined, but there are also lineages whose male members have greatlv multiplied, compensating for the cases of decline. · Someone may say that at the time of the great-grandfather and great-great- crnndfather, not all uncultivated land had been reclaimed and not all vacancies ~

in housing available on the market had been fille<l. However, the amount [of available farmland and housing] has only doubled or, at tbe most, increased three to five times, while the population has grown ten to twenty times. Thus farmland and houses are ahrnys in short supply, while them is always a snrplus of households and population. Furthermore, there are families who [have bought up or otherwise] appropriated other people's properly- one person owning the houses of more than a hundred, one honsehold occupying the farmland of a hundred households. No wonder, then, that e\'erywhere there arc people who h,we died from exposure to windslurrn, rain, and frost, or from hunger and cold and the hardships of homelessness.

Question, Do Heaven-and-earth have a way of dealing with this sitnation' Answer: Heaven-and-earth's way of making adjustments lies in Rood, drought, and plagues [which reduce the population]. However, people w:10 unfortu- nately snceumb to lloo<l, drought, and plagues are no more than 10 or 20 percent of the total population.

Question, Do the rn1er and his ministers have a way of dealing with this situation? Answer: 'n,e ruler and the ministers may make adjustments in the following ways, pursuing policies to ensure that no farmland will remain unused and that there will be no surplus labor. Migration of funners to newly reclaimed bnd m,iy be organized; heavy taxes may he reduced after a comparison is made between past and present tax rntes. E:,trnvagance in consumption may be pro- hibited; the wealthy household's appropriation of the property ofothers may be suppressed. Should there be floods, drought, and plagues, grain iii the granaries may be made available, and all the funds in the government treasmy may be tised for relief-these are all that the n!ler ,md his ministers can do in the way of adjustments between population and productive land. ·

ln a word, after a long period of peaceful rnle, Heaven-and-earth cannot stop the people from reproducing. Yet the resourees with which Heaven-and- earth nonrish the peopk are finite. After a period of peaceful rule, the ruler and the ministers cannot stop the people from reproducing, yet wlrnt the ruler and the ministers can do for the people is limited to the policies enumerated abov·e. Among kn youths in H family, there ,ire alw,1ys one or hrn who resist being educated. Among the idle people in al! the empire, how can it be ex- pected that all will accept control from above7 TI1e housing for one person is inadeqtiate for the needs of ten persons; how can it he sufficient for a hundred

176 THE ivlA'l'URA'l'!ON OF Ct-lJ;'n~SE ClV!LlZATJON

persons? The food for one person is inadequate For ten persons; how can it be

sufficient for a hundred persons? 'T'his is why I a,n worried about pcaceflll rule. lllong, Yiycm, in Jucmshi geji 1:8a~9b ~ KCL]

THE DETF:RlOR!\TJON ()I' LOCAL COVERNMENT

Prefects and County Magistrates

I-·-I0;·1g l,iangji worried not only that the smfeit of population made subsistence difficult.

The detcriorntion of local government in the late Qianlcmg period did not escape his

keen attention either. The smallest tmit of go\'ernment trnditionally was the county

(xian), presided over by " magistrate who was responsible for collection of taxes to produce the anmwl quota, as well as for administration of justice. The tenure of the

1rn1gistn1te was often short, and the quality of his government depended largely on his

control over the permanent s.nb-bureaucrncy- the notorious ymnen clerks and runners

known to lrnvc tyrnnnized the people. In the lat-e eighteenth century, ,1 county mag-

istrate could be responsible for a population as large as a hundred thousand. The direct :mpervisor of the county magistrate \Vas the prefect, ".vhosc prefecture (fu) in-

cluded a number of counties, Neither the prefect nor the magistrate could refonn the

local aclministrntion, especially when the centrn1 and provincial leadership was corn1pt.

Prefects ,md collnty magistrates me officials close to the people. When a prefect is a good person, blessings will spread to a thousand Ii; when the magistrate is a good person, the blessings will spread to a hundred Ii. ls there any secret to the work of prefects and c01111ty magistrates? 'T'he only secret lies in the moti- vation of these officials. In my youth, when I attended to my grandfother and father, I remember that when someone of the neighborhood was appointed a prefect or a county magistrate, he would receive sympathy and encouragement from relatives and friends who were bound to worry as to whether the vacancy [he might then have to fill] had an excessive or a light workload and whether it was in an area known as "difficult to govern." Then during the twenty or thirty years between my coming of age and my becoming an official myself, customs and attitudes abrnptly changed. When someone in the neighborhood : was due to become a prefect or a county magistrate, he would receive sympathy and exhortations from friends and relati,·es who wollld worry about him as to whether the position he might fill would yield enough profit to cover what must be spent on social relations [lit. compensation and entertaining] - in other words, how much the prefect or magistrate would get for himself each year. There would no longer be anr talk about the people's livelihood or the ideals' of local administration.

[When the prefect or county magistrate has arrived at his post! his mind is, not on the people. He must ask such questions as the amount of the customary'

Chinese Stafocra/f and the O(Jenlng of China to the \Ve.;;! 177

fees (/ougui; to be collected each year, How much will the gifts from his sub- ordinates amount to? Vv1rnt surplus will thc,e be from land and other taxes? \foreover, those who me said to he his wives, sons, brnil,<:rs, other relatives, friends, servants and maidservants- all are characterized by insatiable greed ,md will help the prefect or the county magistrate in his pursuit of profit. When, unfortunately, the prefect or magistrate for the same area is changed scvernl times a year, many will be in great distress -these include rnhordinatc person- nel at the boards Lin BeijingF ~md, l:lt the locality, rich E1erchants and con1n1on people. There may be among prefects and county magistrates those who possess sclf'.respect and who actually have the interest, of the people al heart, but it is difficult to find one or two of tl1em among ten prefects or county magislrates. :Vloreover, these one or two [ upright] officials will be ridiculed by the seven or eight olher prefocts and county magistrates as pedantic sticklers, stupid and incapable of watching out for their own interests. Even the higher officials [ at the provincial level] will regard these one or two [ uncorrupted local officials} as out of touch with the exigencies of the times and failing to go along with prevailing practice. If unluckily some fault is found in their conduct of official business, they will be removed as quicklr as possible ..

Yamen Clerks

Yamcn clerks or 1:,ub-offici2l~ ({ixu} arc a subject of frequent complaint by statecraft writers. from the Song on dovm. The latter regard the snb-bureaucrncy that handks mnst official business as venal, grnspi11g; ~md unguided hy the Confucian standards that are supposc<llv inculcated hy the classical education required of regular officials,

In present circumstances, the lrnrrn [that] officials do to the people is far less than the harm yamen clerks do to the people. How so? This is because the yamen clerks today arc not the same as the clerk& of antiquity . who were versed in classical scholarship and expert in their knowledge of laws and im- perial decrees. Clerks in those times no! only would not lrnrnss the people, they would even benefit the people.

This, however, is not the case todav. Out of a hundred yamcn derks, not even one has advanced to become a frcgnlarJ official. Since there is no channel for promotion [to become regular officials], they eoncentrntc on the pursuit of profit ...

. 'Ilic yrnren clerks arc feared by their neighbors; they are feared by scholars, tarrners, artisans and merchants, and indeed bv schobr-officials themselves.

::, Thi" rcfo1s pn:sum:ibl; to ch:rk::; ,1t th.: Board of CivH Office, who ~·xpc:cted gifb hm: loc.il officials sc:r,·i1:g a considerable length of time.

178 THE f\·1A'l'URATl0l\ OF CHfN!.i:SF Cl\'!LlZATlON

When the especially evil-minded and cmming among them take over the actual

control of the [local] administration, the government itself !ears them. Why is this so? It is because officials who themselves want to profit by ex-

ploiting the people cannot do so except through the yamen clerks. The latter know very we!! who is rich and who is not in the local area - these facts may be hidden from the officials but never from the ya men clerks. Whether a house-

hold is worth only one tael, or a hundred or a thousand taels, the yamen clerks know exactly, without fail. Of the amount thcJJ extracted from the people, 30 percent may go to the officials, but 50 percent will have gone to the yamen clerks.

Now among the larger counties, there could be as ma11y as a thousand clerks: for counties of the next size, as many as seven or eight hundred; and for smaller

counties, a minimum of one m two hundred. These one thousand to one or two hundred yamen clerks are not engaged in farming, and the women of their households are not eng,iged in weaving. Clearly, they are living off the people. Roughly speaking, the products of ten households among the people are not•. adequate for the demands of one yarnen clerk. When there arc a thousand · yamen clerks in a county with a population of ten thousand, the people will be restive.

[Hong. Yiyan, in /ua11shi geji t9b-12a -KCL]

THE ROOTS OF REBELLION

The following excerpt is from Memorial on the War Against Heterodoxy, which Horiij::i! submitted in the $prlng of 1798 on the occasion of an imperially conducted eunif\jj ·····, nation for Hanlin academicians. His theme is that the "\X/hite Lotus"' sectarian rebel~? lion had broken out in Hubei, Sic hmm, and other provinces because of the abuse of':! power by local officials, who arhitrnrily added new taxes and persecuted the peopl•':t~ Hong believed that once local government in these areas was reformed and themilita(j<'m and pmvinci;1l officiH1s properly rewarded or punished, the rebellion would end ofi~N mvn accord. Herc he discusses the crisis ln 1oc:::il administration. , :[;ijt

rt:r; The deteriorntion of the county government is a hundred times worse than le~:~ or twenty years ago. T11e [county officials] have betrayed the laws of the Son}~j Heaven and exhausted tire resources of the common people. From what I ha~ij[ heard, although there are heterodox sects in such places as Yi:hang in Hu~f,j~ and Dazhou in Sidman, the people there value their lives and property all.!!!!' love their wives and children too much to dme to violate the law. The co111~!i1j~ officials were not able to prevent the spread of heterodoxy· by exerting go~} influences on the people, and when sectarianism spread, the officials wmrl~jf, use the pretext of investigating heterodoxy to make demands ()n the people an~/!, threaten their lives, until the people joined the rebels. I would humbly ,uggiiij/i

:?:%ii

Chinese Statecrn{t and the Opening o{ Chi nu io the \Vest 179

that in locations where heterodox rebellions have arisen, inquiry must be made into the causes of conAi<:t, to see whether the rebellion was precipitated by the officials, who should he punished according to the facts of each case.

County magistrates have incriminated themselves in three ways.

1 Funds authorized by the court for disaster relief were pocketed by the officials, who would declare that the funds were intended for making up defi- ciencies in what was due the government··-in this way, the beneficence of the court never reached the people.

i. ln ordinary times, the local officials would appropriate taxes and military funds [for their own llse:, But when troubles arose, they would try to conceal their failme and even claim some merit. Connly officials \\'Ou!d conceal the focts from the prefects and circuit intendants; prefects and circuit intendants from the governors~gcncral ar1d governors; governors-genera] and govc:rnors- from even Your Imperial Majesty. Thus the sentiments of those on the lower level have no w,,y of reaching the higher level.

3. \\·11cn there is some success, even personal scrv,mts an<l secretaries (of the county magistrate] claim a share of the merit. But in case of failure, the blame is fixed on the good people who are in dbtrcss as roving migrants. Failure, to be sure, is not the fault of the county officials alone, High officials at the pro- vincial level mid the high military commanders and officers all behave in this way without even making a secret of it. [tis no surprise that the county officials imitate them.

[Hong, Yiyan, in fuamhi geii 10:w-3a - KCLJ

GONG ZIZI-IEN'S REFORMIST VISION

From a prominent family of scholar-officials with a rich literary background, Gong Zi,,hen (,792-1841) stands as a key link between the homegmwn variety of statecraft thought and lhc later generntion whose reformism responded to the challenge of the West. Though recognized as an in1portant poet and a brilliant writer, Gong had no great suct'ess in the higher nmks of officialdom. Instead he demonstrated his talents in secretarial capacities for important slate boards ,md in association with leading offici,1ls snch as Lin Zex11 and vVei Yuan, whose doings and writings, in direct confrontation with the West, continnc this chapicr on Chinese statecraft thinking.

Gong's writings, of which only a small portion survive, covered a "•idc wnge 0 : intellectual interests typical of the practical, evidential learning among Qing Confncians but distinguished in his case by penetrating analyses of Qing weak- nesses and pmphetic warnings of dangers ahead. His independence and out- spokenness no donbt account for the frustration he experienced in fulfilling his passionate desire to be of public service, while these disappointments only in-