The Economic Principles of Confucius and His School

original texts and are in harmony with the entire system of Confucius as revealed by a comparative study of various sources. In support of my interpretation, numerous quotations and references are provided. The Confucian writings may be compared to a great mountain containing rich mineral resources. I am in the position of a miner, extracting a particular ore and contributing it to the world's production. Just as the miner does not create the ore itself but, through his labor in exploring, digging, and refining, makes it available for human use, so I have tried to add something to human knowledge. My task has been so extensive that I have undoubtedly made some mistakes, but I have earnestly tried to be accurate in all my statements. This is the first attempt to present the economic principles of Confucius and his school in a systematic form in any language. At some future time, I intend to translate this book into Chinese.

I am deeply indebted to many individuals. My greatest obligation is to Kang Yu-wei, my former teacher, from whom I obtained a comprehensive view of Confucianism. From my American friends, especially among the professors and students of Columbia University—e.g., Professors John Bates Clark, Edwin R. A. Seligman, Friedrich Hirth, and Warren B. Catlin—I received many ideas and secured assistance in various ways. My greatest obligations, however, are to Dr. and Mrs. B. M. Anderson, Jr., who corrected the greater part of my manuscript; to Professor Henry Rogers Seager, who made numerous suggestions and corrections throughout the entire book; and to Professor Henry Raymond Mussey, who read all the proof sheets.

CHEN HUAN-CHANG.

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK, the seventh day of the seventh month, two thousand four hundred and sixty-two years after Confucius (August 30, 1911 AD).