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“Anecdotes, observations, and characters, of books and men : collected from the conversation of Mr. Pope, and other eminent persons of his time” (Publication, 1750)

Year

1750

Text

Spence, Joseph. Anecdotes, observations, and characters, of books and men : collected from the conversation of Mr. Pope, and other eminent persons of his time. By the Rev. Joseph Spence. Now first published from the original papers, with notes, and a life of the author. by Samuel Weller Singer. Vol. 1-2. (London : Published by W.H. Carpenter ; Edinburgh : Archibald Constable and Co., 1820). (Library of English literature ; 11773). [MS um 1750].
http://books.google.ch/books?id=0BklAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA207&lpg=
PA207&dq=Spence,+Joseph+The+great+men+and+celebrated+
philosophers+among+the+Chinese+are+all+Atheists,+a+sort+of+
Spinosists&source=bl&ots=3vC3W8bEvw&sig=y-mGrTWHM_
XfQjjEjWlPtJ0T-3U&hl=de&ei=kL3QTufsDMyaOtnnsYkP&sa=
X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=
onepage&q&f=false. (SpenJ1)

Type

Publication

Contributors (1)

Spence, Joseph  (Kingsclere, Hampshire 1699-1768 Durham) : Schriftsteller, Historiker, Professor of Poetry, Oxford University

Subjects

Literature : Occident : Great Britain : Prose

Chronology Entries (1)

# Year Text Linked Data
1 1750 Spence, Joseph. Anecdotes, observations, and characters, of books and men [ID D27200].
Er schreibt : "Surely the Chinese are not the wise people they have been cried up for. It is true, they have had printing, gunpowder and astronomy among them for perhaps these two thousand years ; but how little have they improved on each of these articles in all that time ! When our European missionaries first came among them, all the astronomy they had could not rise to the making an almanac. Then their printing, to this day, is not by detached letters, but by whole plates for each page ; so that the pieces for a moderate book must be laid by for any future edition, and would almost lumber up a whole room. Their engineers are sad fellows. Indeed, they were always for encouraging a spirit of peace, and are some of the worst soldiers in the world. Though they had 200’000 men to defend their famous wall, the Tartars forced their way through them with 60’000, and conquered their whole country ; and their kings have ever since been of the Tartar race.
The great men and celebrated philosophers among the Chinese are all Atheists, a sort of Spinosists ; at least, they believe the world was always as it now is.
The Chinese Classics are their ancient writers, of two thousand years standing and upwards, that have given some accounts of their history, and settled the first principles of their religion. Some people talked of them as if they would make five large volumes in folio, but they who are better acquainted with them say that the copy of all of them put together is not bigger than the Pentateuch.
Most of the missionaries deserve but little credit : they have falsified often, and have been discovered in some of their cheats. I think it was in the calculation of a comet, however, in some very nice calculation sent from China to Rome, the learned there were strangely surprised to find it exactly agree with one of Tycho Brahe ; whereas the best of our European astronomers generally differ as to a few minutes at least. This was much talked of there at first, till it was found out, some time after, that the missionaries at Pekin had correced and set this Chinese calculation by Tycho's."

Cited by (1)

# Year Bibliographical Data Type / Abbreviation Linked Data
1 2007- Worldcat/OCLC Web / WC