ty thousand Christians
when the late persecution began. Francis Martinez, a Chinese Jesuit,
having converted a famous doctor, was beaten several times, and at
length expired under the torment. Ricci died in 1617, having lived in
favor with the emperor Vanlie.

F. Adam Schall, a Jesuit from Cologn, by his mathematics, became known
to the emperor Zonchi: but in 1636, that prince laid violent hands upon
himself, that he might not fall into the hands of two rebels who had
taken Pekin. The Chinese called in Xuute, king of a frontier nation of
the Tartars, to their assistance, who recovered Pekin, but demanded the
empire for the prize of his victory: and his son Chunchi obtained quiet
possession of it in 1650. From that time the Tartars have been emperors
of China, but they govern it by its own religion and laws. They
frequently visit their original territories, but rather treat them as
the conquered country. Chunchi esteemed F. Schall, called him father,
and wag favorable to the Christians. After his death the four regents
pat to death five Christian mandarins for their faith, and condemned F.
Schall, but granted him a reprieve; during which he died. The young
emperor Camhi coming of age, put a stop to the persecution, and employed
F. Verbiest, a Jesuit, to publish the yearly Chinese calendar, declared
him president of the mathematics in his palace, and consequently a
mandarin. The first year he opened the Christian churches, which was in
1671, above twenty thousand souls were baptized: and in the year
following, an uncle of the emperor, one of the eight perpetual generals
of the Tartar troops, and several other persons of distinction. The
succeeding emperors were no less favorable to the Christians, and
permitted them to build a most sumptuous church within the enclosures of
their own palace, which in many respects surpassed all the other
buildings of the empire. It was finished in 1702. The Dominican friars,
according to Touron, (Hommes Illustr. t. 6,) entered China in 1556,
converted many to the faith, and, in 1631, laid the foundation of the
most numerous church of Fokieu, great part of which province they
converted to the faith. Four priests of this order received the crown of
martyrdom in 1647, and a fifth, named Francis de Capillas, from the
convent of Valladolid, the apostle of the town of Fogau, was cruelly
beaten, and soon after beheaded, on the 15th of January, 1648;
"because," as his sentence imported, "he contem