"CHAPTER V.
"The infliction of the bamboo is open to abuse in various ways.
For instance, the knots in the wood may not have been smoothed
off; blows may be given inside the joints, instead of above the
knees; the tip end instead of the flat of the bamboo may be used;
each stroke may be accompanied by a drawing movement of the hand,
or the same spot may be struck again after the skin has been
broken, whereby the suffering of the criminal is very much
increased. Similarly, the 'squeezing' punishment depends entirely
for its severity on the length of the sticks employed, whether
these are wet or dry, as well as upon the tightness of the string.
Such points should be carefully looked to by the magistrate
himself, and not left to his subordinates. At the time of
infliction still greater precautions should be taken to prevent
the possibility of any accident, and where the offence was
committed under venial circumstances, some part of the punishment
may be remitted if it is considered that enough has already been
inflicted. Such punishments as pressing the knees to the ground,
making prisoners kneel on chains, or burning their legs with hot
irons, adopted under the specious pretence of not using the
'squeezing' torture, are among the most barbarous of prohibited
practices, and are on no account to be allowed."
"CHAPTER VI.
"Lu Hsin-wu says, There are five classes of people who must be
exempted from the punishment of the bamboo. (1) The aged. (2) The
young. (3) The sick. [It is laid down expressly by statute that
the aged and the young must not be thus coerced into giving
evidence, but there is a danger of overlooking this in a moment of
anger.] (4) The hungry and naked. [For thus to punish a beggar
half dead with cold and hunger and destitute of friends to nurse
him afterwards, would be equivalent to killing him outright.] (5)
Those who have already been beaten. [Whether in a brawl or by
other officials. A second beating might result in death for which
the presiding magistrate would be responsible.]
"There are five classes of people not to be hastily sentenced to
the bamboo. (1) Members of the Imperial family. [The relatives of
his Majesty, even though holding no rank, are not, says the
statute, to be hastily punished in this way. The case must be laid
before the proper authorities.] (2) Officials. [However low down
in a scale, they are still part of the scheme of government;
besides, it affects their good name ever afterwards.] (3)
Graduates. (4) The official servants of your superiors. [Look out
for the vase when you throw at the rat. Though you may be actually
in the right, yet the dignity of your superiors might be
compromised. A plain statement of the facts should be made out and
privately handed to the official in question, leaving punishment
in his hands. But to refrain from such a course through fear of
the consequences would be weak indeed.] (5) Women.
"There are also five cases in which temporary suspension of
punishment is necessary. (1) When the prisoner is under the
influence of excitement, or (2) anger. [The working classes are an
obstinate lot and beating only increases their passion, so that
they would die rather than yield. Arguments should first be used
to show them their error, and then corporal punishment may be used
without fear.] (3) Or drink. [A drunken man doesn't know heaven
from earth, how can he be expected to distinguish right from
wrong? Besides he feels no pain, and further there is a risk of
his insulting the magistrate. He ought to be confined until he is
sober and then punished; but not in a cold place for fear of
endangering his life.] (4) Or when a man has just completed a
journey, or (5) when he is out of breath with running.
"There are also five instances in which it is well for your own
sake to put off punishment for a time. (1) When you are in a rage.
(2) When you are drunk. (3) When you are unwell. [For in the
latter case the system is heated, and not only would you be more
liable to improper infliction of punishment, but also to lose your
temper; and thus injury would be done both to yourself and the
prisoner.] (4) When you can't see your way clearly as to the facts
of the case. (5) When you can't make up your mind as to the proper
punishment. [For in difficult cases and when the prisoner in
question is no ordinary man, it is just as well to look forward a
little as to how the case is likely to end before you apply the
bamboo. It would never do to take such measures without some
consideration, or you might suddenly find that you had by no means
heard the last of it.]
"There are three classes of people who should not be beaten in
addition to what they are to suffer. (1) Those who are to have
their fingers squeezed. (2) Those who are to have the ankle frame
applied. (3) Those who are to be exposed in the cangue. [For if
previously beaten they might be almost unable to move, or their
sores might not heal, and death might perhaps ensue. The statute
provides that they shall be beaten on release, but this might
easily be forgotten in a moment of anger.]
"There are three instances in which compassion should save the
prisoners from the bamboo. (1) When the weather is extremely cold
or hot. (2) When a festival is being celebrated. (3) When the
prisoner has lately been bereaved. [A man who is mourning for his
father, mother, wife, or child, should not be punished
corporeally; it might endanger his life.]
"There are three cases in which a beating deserved should
nevertheless be remitted. (1) When one of the litigants is
considerably older than the other, he should not be beaten. (2)
When one of the litigants is an official servant, the other should
not be beaten. [For although the former may be in the right, his
opponent should be treated with leniency, for fear of people
saying you protect your Yamen servants; and lest in future, when
the servant is in the wrong, no one will dare come forward to
accuse him.] (3) Workmen and others employed by the magistrate
himself should not be bambooed by him, even if they deserve it.
"Three kinds of bambooing are forbidden. (1) With the greater
bamboo. [One stroke of the greater bamboo is counted as ten;
three with the middle-sized, and five with the smaller.
Officials are often too free with, never too chary of, their
punishments. With the smaller bamboo, used even to excess, life is
not endangered. Besides, if the punishment is spread over a longer
time, the magistrate has a longer interval in which to get calm.
But with the heavy bamboo, there is no saying what injuries might
be done even with a few blows.] (2) It is forbidden to strike too
low down. (3) It is forbidden to allow petty officers to use
unauthorised instruments of punishment. These five preceding
clauses refer to cases in which there is no doubt that punishment
ought to be inflicted, but which officials are apt to punish too
indiscriminately without due investigation of circumstances,
whereby they infallibly stir up a feeling of discontent and
insubordination. As regards those instances where punishment is
deserved but should be temporarily suspended, a remission of part
or the whole of the sentence may be granted as the magistrate sees
fit. The great point is to admit an element of compassion, as
thereby alone the due administration of punishment can be
ensured."
FENG-SHUI
"Feng-shui" has of late years grown to be such a common expression in the mouths of foreigners resident in China that it stands no poor chance of becoming gradually incorporated in the languages of more than one nation of the West. And yet, in spite of Dr Eitel's little hand-book, we may venture to assert that a very small percentage of those who are constantly using this phrase really have a distinct and correct idea as to the meaning of the words they employ. It is vaguely known that Feng-shui is a powerful weapon in the hands of Chinese officials whereby they successfully oppose all innovations which savour of progress, and preserve unbroken that lethargic sleep in which China has been wrapt for so many centuries: beyond this all is mystery and doubt. Some say the natives themselves do not believe in it; others declare they do; others again think that the masses have faith, but that enlightened and educated Chinese scout the whole thing as a bare-faced imposture. Most Chinamen will acknowledge they are entirely ignorant themselves on the subject, though at the same time they will take great pains to impress on their hearers that certain friends, relatives, or acquaintances as the case may be, have devoted much time and attention to this fascinating study and are downright professors of the art. They will further express their conviction of its infallibility, with certain limitations; and assert that there are occasions in life, when to call in the assistance of Feng-shui is not only advisable but indispensable to human happiness.
For those who will not be at the trouble of reading for themselves Dr Eitel's valuable little book, we may explain that Feng is the Chinese word for wind and Shui for water; consequently, Feng-shui is wind-water; the first half of which, wind, cannot be comprehended, the latter half, water, cannot be grasped. It may be defined as a system of geomancy, by the science of which it is possible to determine the desirability of sites whether of tombs, houses, or cities, from the configuration of such natural objects as rivers, trees, and hills, and to foretell with certainty the fortunes of any family, community, or individual, according to the spot selected; by the art of which it is in the power of the geomancer to counteract evil influences by good ones, to transform straight and noxious outlines into undulating and propitious curves, rescue whole districts from the devastations of flood or pestilence, and "scatter plenty o'er a smiling land" which might otherwise have known the blight of poverty and the pangs of want. To perform such miracles it is merely necessary to build pagodas at certain spots and of the proper height, to pile up a heap of stones, or round off the peak of some hill to which nature's rude hand has imparted a square and inharmonious aspect. The scenery round any spot required for building or burial purposes must be in accordance with certain principles evolved from the brains of the imaginative founders of the science. It is the business of the geomancer to discover such sites, to say if a given locality is or is not all that could be desired on this head, sometimes to correct errors which ignorant quacks have committed, or rectify inaccuracies which have escaped the notice even of the most celebrated among the fraternity. There may be too many trees, so that some must be cut down; or there may be too few, and it becomes necessary to plant more. Water-courses may not flow in proper curves; hills may be too high, too low, and of baleful shapes, or their relative positions one with another may be radically bad. Any one of these causes may be sufficient in the eyes of a disciple of Feng-shui to account for the sudden outbreak of a plague, the gradual or rapid decay of a once flourishing town. The Feng-shui of a house influences not only the pecuniary fortunes of its inmates, but determines their general happiness and longevity. There was a room in the British Legation at Peking in which two persons died with no great interval of time between each event; and subsequently one of the students lay there in articulo mortis for many days. The Chinese then pointed out that a tall chimney had been built opposite the door leading into this room, thereby vitiating the Feng-shui, and making the place uninhabitable by mortal man.
From the above most meagre sketch it is easy to understand that if the natural or artificial configuration of surrounding objects is really believed by the Chinese to influence the fortunes of a city, a family, or an individual, they are only reasonably averse to the introduction of such novelties as railways and telegraph poles, which must inevitably sweep away their darling superstition—never to rise again. And they do believe; there can be no doubt of it in the mind of any one who has taken the trouble to watch. The endless inconvenience a Chinaman will suffer without a murmur rather than lay the bones of a dear one in a spot unhallowed by the fiat of the geomancer; the sums he will subscribe to build a protecting pagoda or destroy some harmful combination; the pains he will be at to comply with well-known principles in the construction and arrangement of his private house—all prove that the iron of Feng-shui has entered into his soul, and that the creed he has been suckled in is the very reverse of outworn. The childlike faith of his early years gradually ripens into a strong and vigorous belief against which ridicule is perhaps the worst weapon that can possibly be used. Nothing less than years of contact with foreign nations and deep draughts of that real science which is even now stealing imperceptibly upon them, will bring the Chinese to see that Feng-shui is a vain shadow, that it has played its allotted part in the history of a great nation, and is now only fit to be classed with such memories of by-gone glory as the supremacy of China, the bow and arrow, the matchlock, and the junk.