Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 6.djvu/116

Rh COCHIN CHINA precision the indications of tone without which the Anamese words have no sense for the natives. This system is universally adopted in French Cochin China, and the new generation, almost without exception, are able to read and write in Latin characters. National The Anamese are idle, incapable of deep emotion, and haracter f on d O f ease. They show much outward respect for ntl superiors and parents, but they take great delight in ms mocking and banter. They cherish great love of their native soil and native village, and cannot long remain far from home. On the whole they are mild, or rather apathetic, but the facility with which they learn is remark able. Buddhism, mingled with coarse popular beliefs, is the dominant creed, but the learned hold the doctrine of Confucius, and in truth the people of Anam are but slightly religious. Nevertheless, like their neighbours, the Chinese and the Cambodians, they have a great respect for the dead, and their worship almost entirely consists of ceremonies in honour of their ancestors. Like the Chinese they dispose of the body by inhumation. Among the savage tribes of the interior there is scarcely any idea of a God, and the superstitious practices to which they are addicted can scarcely be considered as the expression of a definite religious idea. Christianity counts 400,000 adherents in Tong-kiug and 5000 in Lower China. overu The system of government in the empire of Anam is tent. p ure an( j absolute monarchy without any other constitution than powerful custom. The succession to the throne follows the order of primogeniture. Between the citizens there exists the most complete equality, since public offices are open to all, and there are no other social distinctions than those due to office or fortune. The sovereign, at once high priest and supreme judge, governs despotically with the assistance of six ministers. The army, or rather the military list, for a large part of the force exists only on paper, is composed of 80 regiments, with 500 men in each. It is recruited from Cochin China ; Tong-king furnishes no soldiers. It is under the command of a commander- in-chief, a kind of constable of the kingdom, or grand marshal, who is personally responsible for the defence of the citadel of Hue. The marine, which has no ships, is composed of 30 regimerits, under an admiral-in-chief, who is assisted by a vice-admiral and two rear-admirals, each of whom commands 10 regiments. The mandarins, as in China, form two distinct classes the civil and the military. The first class are scholars who have passed literary examinations. The latter are chosen chiefly on account of physical fitness; and it is only in the highest ranks that well-educated respectable men are to be found. The people have a great regard for the learned, who have all received a higher moral education, that of Confucius. The mandarins are divided into nine degrees, and each degree comprises two classes. Besides the French colony, the empire of Anam is divided into 24 provinces placed each under the authority of a governor. The province is subdivided into departments, arrondissements, cantons, and communes. The French colony, administered by a governor assisted by a privy council, comprehends the six ancient provinces of the south. It is now divided into four provinces, bearing the names of their chief cities, Saigon, Mi-tho, Vinh-long, and Bassac. The provinces form to gether 19 inspectorships with an administrator of native affairs at the head of each. hief The chief town and the ancient capital of Tong-king, Ha-noi, or Ke-cho (i.e., the market), situated on one of the branches of the Song-Coi, though at present greatly fallen, still contains at least 50,000 inhabitants. It possesses a very large citadel, which serves as the residence of the viceroy and of the special envoy or royal commissioner, who is the first authority in Tong-king. This citadel, at present badly kept in repair and poorly equipped, was built in the course of last century according to plans furnished by European engineers, The provincial capitals of Hai-dzuong (30,000 inhabitants), Bac-Ninh, Nam-Dinh, likewise possess important citadels ; and that of Minh-binh, also the chieMown of a province, is the strongest of all Tong-king. Hue&quot;, or Fhu-tua-tien, capital of the kingdom of Anam, is composed of two portions the inner town, a vast fortress built on the Vauban system according to the plans of French engineers, and occupied by the Government ; and the outer town, which is inhabited by the mass of the population, who are estimated at 100,000 souls. Mention may also be made of Tourane and Quin-nhon, or Binh-dhiuh, important ports open to European commerce. Saigon, the capital of the French colony, is composed of three towns: 1st, an Asiatic town, inhabited by Auamese husbandmen, fishers, or servants, by mercantile Chinamen, by Malays, Tagals, and Hindus engaged in various occupations ; 2d, the town of the colonists ; and 3d, the Government town, inhabited by the Government employe s, administrators, officers, and physicians. The houses are mainly built of brick. Two gardens, one belonging to the governor and the other the botanical, overlook the town. The latter is very interesting, containing as it does a fine collection of trees and plants, both indigenous and exotic, as well as a very curious menagerie. At the port of Saigon 387 vessels entered and 398 left in 1874, which forms about half of the whole maritime trade in the colony. Eight miles from Saigon is the town of Cho-len (i.e., the great market), a Chinese town with an extensive commerce, and according to some writers 80,000, according to others 30,000 or 40,000 inhabitants. The other towns of the colony are Go-cong to the south-west of Saigon, where, in the midst of the rice fields, there lives an agricultural population, which presents in all its purity the true Anamese type ; Mi-tho, a port on one of the arms of the Me-kong, and the second town of the colony ; the fort and the town of Yinh- long ; the fort and town of Chaudoc ; Ha-tien, on the Gulf of Siam, one of the most unhealthy places on the coast, inhabited by Chinese and Anamese ; and at the Cape St Jacques, the military port and fort of Ba-ria. It is difficult to state the exact number of the population Popult of the empire of Anam, and authors vary greatly in their tioi &amp;gt;- estimates. The data which appear most worthy of credit give a total sum of 10 or 12 millions. As to the French colony, the last official census of which the results have been published was made in 1873; it gives 1,487,200 inhabitants, of whom 49,500 were Chinese and 82,700 Cambodians. The Europeans numbered 1114, exclusive of the Government officials and the garrison. The Anamese, according to their own annals, are natives Histor of the south of China. &quot; In the 2d or 3d century before Abraham,&quot; says Pere Legraud de la Liraije, &quot; four barbarous tribes occupied the limits of the Chinese empire ; to the south was the tribe of the Giao-chi.&quot; It is from this tribe that the Anamese claim to have descended ; and at the time when history begins to acquire some degree of certitude, about 2357 before our era, the Chinese annals mention the Anamese under the name of Giao-chi, which signifies &quot; with the big toe.&quot; According to native scholars the history of this epoch is of a legendary character. It results from their labours that for twenty centuries the race of Giao-chi was governed in vassalage to the empire by a dynasty of Chinese origin, which lasted till 257 B.C. From that date till 110 before the Christian era the throne was held by two other vassal dynasties; and from 110 B.C. till 907 A.D. these dynasties were replaced by Chinese governors. In the beginning of the 10th century some of the native chiefs, weary of the Chinese rule, revolted ; and their efforts were crowned with success. From 960 downwards,