REVIEWS OF RECENT BOOKS 201 



language; (b) The unravelling of the history of the language and 

 (c) The elucidation of modern Chinese in every respect and from every 

 point of view. In examining authorities he attributes certain merits 

 to Dr. Edkins, but for the most part he criticizes him as being too 

 arbitrary and "his methods are not permissible." Dr. E. H. Parker's 

 dilettantism in his treatment of the subject in the Introduction to 

 Giles's Dictionary wholly fails. M. G. Schlegel is "without the 

 critical faculty and without method." M. Volpecelli, however, is better, 

 but even he shows lack of true principles. M. M. Kuhnert et Schaank 

 have contributed solidly — but they are still full of faults. Others are 

 mentioned and their work critically examined. After the very severe 

 criticism of Dr. Parker's essay some people may be led in consequence 

 to read it. 



The ordinary student of Chinese will never look into these parts. 

 They are only for the phonologist. These will find much to occupy 

 their attention. For our own part we frankly question the utility of 

 all this phoneticism. There are very few phonetic languages really. 

 The Welsh possibly comes nearest. Chinese is far from being so. 

 It is only necessary to glance at the artificiality that has been found 

 necessary to create a system of symbols to represent sounds to justify 

 this statement. The system lacks, however, the happy mean for which 

 philosophies have pleaded. It is really of little practical value. It 

 would be too much to impose this system, made up of mongrel letters 

 with a lot of tattooing and plaisters, on the ordinary student. Those 

 who have been brought up on Wade or some such system are aware of 

 •deficiencies which they recognize. These systems are only con- 

 ventional and are looked on as such. W T ith the help of these, results 

 could be attained and ruling sounds found. For this is a business 

 which does not admit of strict mathematical laws, and scientific 

 steps. Climate, food idiosyncracies have played too much part in 

 human sounds for these strict rules. And without these, leading 

 kinships, predominant affiliations can be discovered and recorded. 



China of the Chinese. By E. T. C. Werner, H.B.M. Consul, Foochow, 



(Retired) Barrister-at-law, Middle Temple. 

 Mr. Werner made his fame by publishing his Descriptive Sociology — 

 Chinese, a book of immense research, although we will admit the form 

 •of it is sufficiently appalling to the reader. Sir Isaac Pitman has a 

 series of popular books on the various peoples of Europe and Asia, and 

 -this book is one of the series — as to whether it is popular or not, that 



