systems.

The basis, however, of Chinese religious thought is ancestor worship.
Whether they are Confucians, like most of the mandarins, or Taoists or
Buddhists, like the common people, Chinamen always cherish the same
reverence for the souls of their forefathers. An altar in their honour
is raised in even the simplest house. The graves may not be disturbed,
and nothing but respect is cherished for the memory of the departed. In
the seventeenth century the Manchu emperor, Kang Hi, ruled China for
sixty-one years with a power and wisdom which made him one of the
greatest monarchs of any age. His grandson, Kien Lung, inherited all his
excellent qualities, and when he had ruled China for nearly sixty-one
years he abdicated simply in order that, out of respect to his ancestor,
the years of his reign might not exceed his grandfather's.

One consequence of this ancestor worship is that enormous areas of China
are covered with graves. The Mongol emperor, Kublai Khan, who reigned at
the end of the thirteenth century, roused furious opposition by ordering
that all the burial-grounds should be broken up and turned into fields.
At the present time, when new railways are spreading mile after mile
through China, the sanctity of the graveyards is one of the greatest
obstacles to engineers. The Chinese will not disturb the slumbers of
their forefathers, and therefore the railway has often to pass round a
hallowed place or avoid it by means of a bridge. The Emperor himself
travels to Mukden simply to make offerings at the graves of his
ancestors. Kang Hi and Kien Lung are buried in Mukden, and their
dynasty, the Manchu, still rules over the country.

The Chinese feel this association with a past life more strongly than
with the future, and the worship of their ancestors almost takes the
place of affection for their fatherland. They certainly love their own
homes, but what goes on in other parts of the country is a matter of
indifference to them. To the Cantonese it matters not whether the
Russians take Manchuria or the Japanese Korea, provided only that Canton
is left in peace. Ancestor worship may be said, indeed, to be the true
religion of the Chinese. For the rest they are filled with an
unreasoning fear of spirits, and have recourse to many different gods
who, they believe, can control these influences for good and evil. They
are very superstitious. If any one falls sick of fever and becomes
delirious, his relations believe that