The Minister sent the report on to the Emperor, and his Celestial Majesty, fearful lest these ten men might overthrow his kingdom, instantly ordered them to come right home and have their heads chopped off.
The accused Chinese merchants say that they are innocent, and that the charge was made against them by their enemies; and of enemies they seem to have an unlimited number.
It appears that Chinese society is a very complicated affair.
The Chinese, in their own country, live in families and clans, after the manner of the Scotch, and like the ancient Scotch people there are frequently terrible feuds or quarrels between the various clans. If one man of a clan offends a man of another clan, the two entire clans take up the quarrel, and every man of the one clan is ready to fight any man of the other clan, and injure him as far as lies in his power.
In China, as in Scotland, families or clans consist of every living member or connection of the family.
In China the affairs of every member of the family are managed by a council. This council consists of the elders (men over sixty years of age), and the scholars. We told you in No. 1 of THE GREAT ROUND WORLD what severe trials a man has to go through in China before he can be called a scholar.
It is the duty of this council to collect and save all moneys due to any member of the family, to direct the business of their households, and to manage the family and its affairs so completely that the members of the family are like children under the guidance of a very careful parent; and when they come to this country, and are obliged to think and act for themselves, they are no more capable of doing so than they would be if they were really children.
To meet this difficulty, and help the Chinamen, an organization called the First Company was formed in San Francisco, which undertook the duties of the elders of the families, and was a great comfort to the Chinamen in America.
By and by, as more Chinamen came into the country, the First Company got too large, and others were formed on the same principle, until finally there were six companies altogether. Then other societies were formed by the Chinamen, and among them the Sam Yup and the See Yup.