ascribed, I conceive, chiefly to two causes:-- his being the
preserver, namely of

l During the present dynasty, the tablet of ¤å©÷«Ò§g, the god of
literature, has to a considerable extent displaced that of
Confucius in schools. Yet the worship of him does not clash with
that of the other. He is 'the father' of composition only.
2 The Chinese, vol. ii. p. 45.


the monuments of antiquity, and the exemplifier and expounder of

[Sidebar] The causes of his influence.

the maxims of the golden age of China; and the devotion to him of
his immediate disciples and their early followers. The national
and the personal are thus blended in him, each in its highest
degree of excellence. He was a Chinese of the Chinese; he is also
represented as, and all now believe him to have been, the beau
ideal of humanity in its best and noblest estate.
4. It may be well to bring forward here Confucius's own
estimate of himself and of his doctrines. It will serve to
illustrate the

[Sidebar] His own estimate of himself and of his doctrines.

statements just made. The following are some of his sayings:--
'The sage and the man of perfect virtue;-- how dare I rank myself
with them? It may simply be said of me, that I strive to become
such without satiety, and teach others without weariness.' 'In