Charles Toogood Downing

The Fan-qui in China, in 1836-7 Charles Toogood Downing

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1838 edition. Excerpt: ...of discovering an analogy between them, except perhaps, in a few fanciful instances. As at present written, the Chinese language appears composed of a vast number of words, variously estimated from 30,000 to 260,000 by different writers, and each having a character or symbol peculiar to itself. Every term is indeclinable, and the only way of expressing the genitive and dative cases is by placing one noun before the other, as we do sometimes in English; viz:--the Brighton Pier, &c. There appears to be no way of expressing the plural. The task of learning such a language, of getting by rote so many distinct and separate words, each of which is necessary to form a fresh idea, would appear to be too great for human perseverance. But lately the study of the Chinese has been very much facilitated, by the discovery that all these forms of expression are compounded of 214 simple signs, which represent the grandest and most remarkable objects of nature. By the joining of these keys together complex notions are expressed, such 172 CHINESE HAPPINESS. as 2f the great one or ruler of all, is compounded of--one, and £ great; and ad signifying benefit or interest is formed of m ripe corn, and 7t a reaping-hook. Although formed of these simple keys, which are not so great in number but that they might be learned perfectly by a little perseverance, it must not be supposed that a mere knowledge of them alone will enable the student to understand the whole language. The ideas of the Chinese are so different from those of a European, that the latter would find a great difficulty in understanding the allusions or agreeing with the conclusions of the former; for we should not understand that happiness or comfort was intended to be expressed, by the union of the...