f family
piety, are palpably lacking not only in the exaltation of Mysticism,
but in any religious feeling, generally so-called.

The second reason that made the teaching of Confucius so influential
is based on the circumstances of the time. When this thoughtful,
earnest youth awoke to the consciousness of life about him, he saw
that the abuses under which the people groaned sprang from the feudal
system, which cut up the country into separate territories, over which
the power of the king had no control. China was in the position of
France in the years preceding Philippe-Auguste, excepting that there
were no places of sanctuary and no Truce of God. The great doctrine of
Confucius was the unlimited despotism of the Emperor, and his moral
precepts were intended to teach the Emperor how to use his power
aright. But the Emperor was only typical of all those in
authority--the feudal duke, the judge on the bench, and the father of
the family. Each could discharge his duties aright only by submitting
to the moral discipline which Confucius prescribed. A vital element in
this system is its conservatism, its adherence to the imperial idea.
As James I said, "No bishop, no king," so the imperialists of China
have found in Confucianism the strongest basis for the throne, and
have supported its dissemination accordingly.

The Analects of Confucius contain the gist of his teachings, and is
worthy of study. We find in this work most of the precepts which his
disciples have preserved and recorded. They form a code remarkable for
simplicity, even crudity, and we are compelled to admire the force of
character, the practical sagacity, the insight into the needs of the
hour, which enabled Confucius, without claiming any Divine sanction,
to impose this system upon his countrymen.

The name Confucius is only the Latinized form of two words which mean
"Master K[']ung." He was born 551 B.C., his father being governor of
Shantung. He was married at nineteen, and seems to have occupied some
minor position under the government. In his twenty-fourth year he
entered upon the three years' mourning for the death of his mother.
His seclusion gave him time for deep thought and the study of history,
and he resolved upon the regeneration of his unhappy country. By the
time he was thirty he became known as a great teacher, and disciples
flocked to him. But he was yet occupied in public duties, and rose
through successive stages to the office of Chief J